To make the most of your iPhone experience and then some—like sharper photos, extended battery life and a physical keyboard—consider these new and innovative add-ons.
Lights, Camera, iPhone
(Pictured right, clockwise from the top): Olloclip offers a variety of iPhone photography add-ons. Use the Macro 3-in-1 Photo Lens with your iPhone 5/5s for razor-sharp close-ups. The Two-Sided Telephoto and Circular Polarizing Lens affords 2x optical zoom (with telephoto) for reducing glare and enriching color (with CPL). And the 4-in-1 Lens includes a wide-angle, two macro lenses and a fish-eye lens to capture a distorted yet funky 180-degree field of view. Macro 3-in-1, $70; Telephoto and Circular Polarizing Lens, $100; 4-in-1, $70, olloclip.com
The palm-size Pico Genie P50 projects an image from your smartphone using a HDMI or USB connection. Genie P50 Projector, approximately $326, personal-projector.co.uk
Sony’s Cyber-Shot QX10 lens-style camera snaps directly onto your phone, delivering 18.9 megapixels and 10x optical zoom. Cyber-Shot QX10, $250, store.sony.com
The iPhone-mounted Dot, from New York start-up Kogeto, is the world’s smallest panoramic lens for shooting video. Dot video lens, $49, kogeto.com
Extra Credit: Everyday Add-Ons
Double the battery life of your iPhone 5 with Jackery Leaf’s new snap-on charging case, available in black, white and orange. Snap-on rechargeable battery case, $60, Jackery Leaf, JackeryLeaf.com
The sleek Era earpiece by Jawbone will force you to abandon your judgmental thoughts about people who wear Bluetooth headsets. Era Bluetooth headset, $130, Jawbone, Jawbone.com
A hand-crafted iPhone amplifier made of gorgeous American Black walnut that projects sound using the phone’s own speakers—no plug-in necessary. Walnut Original Amplifier, $95, Koostik, Koostik.com
If you struggled to give up your Blackberry because of its signature easy-to-use keyboard, you’re in luck—the Typo Keyboard case brings that same typing ability to the iPhone. Keyboard Case, $99, Typo, TypoKeyboards.com (available for pre-order)
Four Apps to Try
Facetune: Instantly airbrushes skin, whitens teeth and removes wrinkles, bringing users one step closer to the perfect selfie.
Afterlight: A robust image-editing app that comes equipped with 56 filters, 66 film textures and 75 frames.
Flipagram: Create short, flipbook-style videos using photos from Instagram, Facebook and your phone’s library.
Instasize: The app enables users to post full-size images on Instagram, eliminating the chance of awkward, unwanted photo crops.
High-Tech Hardware
A nifty little gadget, dubbed the Impossible Instant Lab, is resurrecting the Polaroid. The portable printer turns digital iPhone photos into physical prints. Just download the companion app and select a photo, and the device spits out a Polaroid-style picture that feels like a modern relic. the-impossible-project.com
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