Olloclip Adds A Lens To Your iPhone

A couple of years ago, Patrick O'Neill had an idea. He believed that hardware, not software, was at the heart of great iPhone photography. He wasn't the only one. Designer Chong Pak agreed with him.

They wanted to create a double-sided lens converter that could slip inside your pocket. It sounded like a handy little device at the time. The fact that it was invented in nearby Huntington Beach was a bonus.

The Olloclip is a fisheye, wide-angeled, and macro lens in a compact camera accessory.   

Once the lens started to ship, it quickly attracted a cult following of people who love it. Some are friends of mine. And Apple even liked it enough that Olloclip was invited to enjoy some international retail store space. Almost all third-party products want the invite, but most of them never get it.

What makes Olloclip different is that much like Apple, O'Neill and Pak aimed for simplicity of design and quality components. It only weighs about one-third the size of an electronic car key. It weighs less too. (The small size is also why I recommend the red lens over the black.)

Olloclip made an overview video that runs down the basics, but be warned before you watch it. The product is cooler than the commercial, which resembles an early 80s throwback spot.


Of the three lenses, the two I use the most are the macro and wide angle. While the fisheye works, it's not a look I love. The few times I've taken pictures with it, I mostly edit off the black circular border left behind. Still, some people like it.

Fisheye. With its  hemispherical shape, the lens captures a panoramic-like view (about 180 degrees). While some people use it for landscapes, brightly colored artistic shots seem to suit it. It's especially cool when capturing something that doesn't lose its luster with distortion.

Macro. This is an exceptionally useful lens when you want a close-up without relying on an app. The macro lens magnifies your image roughly 10 times and allows you to get within with 12-15 millimeters of the subject material. The detail is crisp and brilliant, ideal for any small object or even something that would otherwise be too small for the eye.

Wide-Angled. Of the three lenses, the wide-angled is most likely to see some everyday usage. It doubles the field of view, giving the photographer a much bigger canvas. What impressed me the most is the little lens worked exactly like a wide-angled lens is supposed to, giving the photograph more depth of field by exaggerating the subject in the foreground.

An overview of additional products from Olloclip.

Since Olloclip has come out, O'Neill and Pac have been adding to the brand. Most of the additions were to address a few shortcomings. Specifically, the lens fit best on naked iPhones.

The solution was to invent a case specifically for the iPhone 4/4s and iPhone 5 owners. Called the Quick-Flip, the case features a corner that rotates to accommodate the lens. The case also has an accessory that slides onto the case for tripod mounts, video lights, and microphones.

It's a good idea, but still doesn't address a primary design challenge that prohibits using the product with a case. A better idea might be to spring load the clip mechanism, allowing the lens to accommodate a few variable millimeters. While it might not provide a solution for every case, it would ensure a snug fit.

Giving the case a break on special occasions or swapping cases is another solution too. It doesn't seem like too much of a hardship even if most people seem reluctant to take off a case after they put it on.

The Olloclip Lens Snaps On 7.1 On The Liquid Hip Richter Scale. 

Overall, Olloclip is a tremendous design achievement in adding hardware to one of the most-used cameras on the market today (our phones). With the exception of a few design limitations, Olloclip is right on target. In fact, rather than focus on additional accessories to be all things to all people, everyone around here is looking forward to more lenses, filters, and other goodies that manipulate the image without relying on digital manipulation all the time.

You can find the Olloclip Quick-Connect Lens on Amazon. Olloclip also maintains its own storefront. New product launches are listed there first. Visit them on Facebook where they sometimes share fan photos too.

Color Uncovered Is Wildly Insightful

Although the release of iBooks 2 textbooks (selling 350,000 textbooks in three days) stole some thunder from recently released educational applications, it's impossible to ignore Color Uncovered from the Exploratorium in San Francisco. Its recently released educational app is wild, beautiful, and free.

The subject is color. And while designed with children in mind, the program can easily be considered a must have for artists and photographers — especially those who haven't studied color, light, and pigments. Color Uncovered presents just under 20 exhibits similar to those that you might see at Exploratorium stations except they are beautifully recast for the iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad.

The hero shot is the first exhibit, featuring an optical illusion that helps demonstrates how the brain fills in shapes that it expects to see rather than what is actually there. The faint blue square you see, for example, is absolute fiction.

The interactive experiments capture attention, but how you apply it counts.

Most reviews have touted it as an educational tool, mostly for children. The assessment comes from the interactive feature included on the page. Each of the circles can be pulled outward, disrupting the pattern. It's fun, even if it could be more than that.

Depending on how you apply the lesson, different ideas emerge. Someone who is science minded might consider the theory that the optical illusion is a latent ability that once helped us see faint outlines underwater.

The artist, designer, or photographer might take away something else. Paintings or photographs could impart entirely different meanings by taking in what our brains are all too ready to see. While not necessarily new on its own, there are more mini exhibitions to explore, including a better understanding of Claude Monet.

The French impressionist had more than light in his eyes.

While many people are familiar with the the French impressionist's paintings, especially Water Lilies, there is more to the story than being included in exhibitions for breaking with tradition. According to Color Uncovered, Monet could see and frequently painted patterns and colors to include the ultraviolet spectrum.

He acquired the ability late in his career after he developed cataracts that dulled his vision. In 1923, he underwent surgery to have them removed. The unexpected result was allowing him to see the ultraviolet spectrum, which a normal lens is equipped to filter out. In other words, water lilies look white for most people but Monet saw them how he painted them — pale blue with vibrant patterns.

A cross sampling of color exhibits within Color Uncovered.

The application presents dozens of optical illusions, most of which are interactive or ask for specific participation to make the optical illusions work. Don't be surprised to recognize a few if you've sought out optical illusions before. Where Color Uncovered shines is in the explanation.

Your eyes will make spots disappear, imagine colors that don't exist within the pigments used, demonstrate how the mind is attracted to luminance, or how color saturation can seem fleeting. One of the most striking (even if you've seen it before) is how the brain can colorize a photo based on nothing more than color negatives. The effect only lasts a second, but the artist's application is mind bending.

Of course, not all of the screen exhibits are about how we see things. Sometimes they are about how things are. As most designers know, computer screens only use three colors. As most photographers know, incandescent lights add more reds and halogen lamps emit more blues. Or as only people in the tropic might know, oranges are really green unless they've been treated with ethylene gas or blasted by cold.

All in all, the app is light on content in that it can be digested in the quick span of half an hour, maybe an hour if you are really concentrating on each experiment (and watch all of the videos included in the Shades of Meaning, which is the least grabbing of every thread).

However, just because the app is 17 exhibits today, that doesn't mean it will have 17 exhibits tomorrow. The Exploratorium originally launched the app with 11 pages. The additional exhibits were added as an update.

Color Uncovered By The Exploratorium Surprises At 5.4 On The Liquid Hip Richter Scale. 

As a free education application, the Exploratorium has put together a great starting set for anyone interested in light, color, science, and perception. The physical Exploratorium is a museum of science, art, and human perception with hundreds of explore-for-yourself exhibits. The museum will be moving to the San Francisco's historic waterfront in 2013.

You can find Color Uncovered for free on iTunes. You can also learn more about the Exploratorium  on its website. For those interested in the work of Claude Monet, we found a surprising collection of prints, museum prints, and canvas prints at Barewalls (including Water Lilies). Just search for his name.

Sky Gamblers Flies For Dogfights

There have been about 70 World War I flight sims on the market at one time or another since Atari released the Red Baron in 1981. Game play has always been all over the map, which is why most of them enjoyed a quick pickup of interest before falling off the radar, usually to more modern aircraft.

But there is one World War I flight sim that could have a longer shelf life. Rise Of Glory: Sky Gamblers invested development in the flight controls to create a realistic flight experience with better maneuverability than any combat flight simulator for the iPad, iPod, or iPhone.

Sky Gamblers wins with a richer, more complex control system.

There are some people who are complaining about the controls, but it is the controls that make for such rewarding game play. Pilots can control the planes with a combination of tilt (three-axis gyro), rudder (on-screen touch), throttle (on-screen touch), and finger motions (special maneuvers).

The primary complaints are related to using the three-axis gyro (tilt) component. Ignore them. The learning curve is quick, and the dual movement controls (three-axis tilt combined with touch variations) are what add a dynamic to aero-stunt flying in combat. If you can master those combinations, finger motions for special maneuvers aren't even needed. The responsiveness is that good.

Sky Gamblers offers up a diversity of vintage flying experiences.

The planes are modeled off of eight different designs (with two versions each). Two of them are based on the most famous from history: Sopwith Camel, which was piloted by Major William Barker; and the Fokker Dr. I, which was the mount of the Red Baron Manfred von Richthofen. With the possible exception of the Sopwith Triplane or Spad XIII, players gravitate to the more famous planes.

The most common exception is the Spad. Without question, the Spad was the most capable fighter toward the latter part of World War I. But much like real lift, there are tradeoffs in the game. The Spad is significantly faster, but feels less maneuverable than the Sopwith Camel or Fokker.

Maneuverability is important, especially while playing against real opponents. At faster speeds, you lose too much of it. (That's not a game fault, it's a flight truism.)

Other planes in the game include the Bleriot, BE2, RE8, PFALZ, and Albatros. All are unlocked by playing the campaign, which is especially important before taking the game online.

Some people don't seem to know this, because it's not uncommon to see players attempting to fly a Bleriot against pilots with the Sopwiths, Fokkers, or Spads. They don't have a chance.

Campaigns, dogfights, customs, and online options. 

The campaign is the best place to start for another reason, with the player piloting a Bleriot with tutorial instructions to understand the basics of the game and get a feel for the flight. Some missions are harder than others (and it took me awhile to understand the 'photo' mission), but playing the campaigns is the best way to understand the flight controls.

Each mission focuses on different elements, ranging from strafing or bombing ground units to dogfights and taking out balloons. While many people like to bypass campaigns and head to online game play, it's very much a mistake in Sky Gamblers.



Likewise, dogfight missions are progressively more challenging in head-to-head fights against aggressive artificial intelligence pilots. The level of difficultly increases with game play against various mixes and matches between the number of enemies and wing men. I've personally found that it's always a good idea to play at least one dogfight mission before joining the online games.

Custom games are also worthwhile for the same reason. It's the best chance to learn some of the online scenarios — free for all, team deathmatch, defend the base, and capture the flag — before playing online. But eventually, online is where you will want to play. Nothing beats the online challenges with up to eight players per game (or on a local WiFi).

When you do play online, expect most gamers to play free for all or capture the flag. This may change as more people pick up the game (almost all games develop loose friendships, alliances, and clans after awhile).

Anyone playing will also find that human opponents are easier than the artificial intelligence for now. As players pick up more tricks (such as not flying away from opponents and using the throttle to enhance maneuverability), it will be very likely to change.

The game does have a ranking system based on kills versus deaths, with kills earning two points and deaths equally one point. The system is fair instead of harsh, giving everyone the opportunity to move up quickly (unless they fly a Bleriot, which is like a knife in a gunfight).

Sky Glamblers was developed by a division of Namco Bandai. 

Sky Gamblers was the creation of Namco North America, Inc. It has dozens of titles, but is possibly best known for the cinematic Ace Combat, which is becoming even more video-realistic this year. It's safe to assume its experience with flight sims and the iPad, iPod, and iPhone platform paid off.

Even better, Namco Bandai seems to have learned its lesson about in-game purchases. Last year, the company launched Ace Combat for the iPhone and iPad, but players complained. I'm glad they did. Requiring people to make in-game purchases has made flight games like Skies of Glory (World War II themed) and F.A.S.T. (modern aircraft), both by SGN, largely unplayable.

Sky Gamblers: Rise Of Glory Takes Flight At 8.3 On The Liquid Hip Richter Scale. 

Namco Bandai has developed a near-perfect flight game with Sky Gamblers. Hands down, it is the best historic flight combat app available. The only way to make it better is to continue to build out the campaign scenarios and add more features to customize the planes.

Rise Of Glory: Sky Gamblers is available for download in the iTunes App Store. If you are interested in World War I, consider renting (don't buy) The Red Baron, which is short on story but fun for the aerial flying. The better movie is easily The Blue Max. You can also find The Red Fighter Pilot: The Autobiography of the Red Baron by Manfred von Richthofen on Amazon. There is much less is written about Major William Barker, to whom history has been less kind, despite his numerous accomplishments and receipt of the Victoria Cross.

Incipio Adds Flair To The iPhone With Dotties

In 1999, a group of gadget-obsessed designers set out to fuse fashion and function in the electronics accessories industry. The result was Incipio Technologies, a company dedicated to manufacturing accessories for the iPhone, iPod, Zune, and BlackBerry.

The company had every reason to win an iLounge Best of Show Award in 2010. Their case creation, dotties, includes 15 colors loaded into the case and 30 additional colorful dots that can be easily interchanged, making iPhone cases completely customizable.

The customization makes the grade. For the iPhone 3G, 3Gs, 4G, iPod touch 4G and other electronics, there are six to eight core color combinations, including black, pink, white, blue, purple, gray, and red. Each of those, on the back, have dottie spots, where you can pop out and put in six color combinations that match the base with enough extra dots to be as eclectic or nihilistic as you want.

The iPhone 4G has 13 spots to fill. Other phones and touches have as many as 15. Most cases retail from $15 to $25, depending on where you shop.

Dotties Helps Raise The Bar For Innovative Design.

The case itself is made from a high density silicone core that wraps snugly around your iPod or iPhone for some more shock-absorbing protection. There are even special camera-ready holes to leave the camera open or closed, depending the model you happen to own.

Equally compelling is the new product launch Incipio has planned for January, specific to the iPhone 4G. A much bigger investment than the colorful and stylish dotties cases, the super thin offGRID case (6mm in thickness and adding only two ounces of weight) is much more than a cover.

Inside the elegant design, Incipio concealed an ultra thin rechargeable battery with an Apple Dock Connector plug, allowing you to charge your iPhone 4. According to the manufacturer, the internal battery will double the life of the already longer-lasting iPhone 4G specs. It also allows you to charge sync to iTunes using the provided micro-USB cable. Smart stuff.

If you are looking for more than high tech solutions or the smart and stylish dotties customization, Incipio has teamed up with a handful of outside designers and skaters to put their graphics skills to work. Their team page includes Greg Lutzka, Jeremy Stenberg, Louie Vito, PLG, and Ryan Villopoto.

Dotties By Incipio Customizes Case Cover Design With 6.4 On The Liquid Hip Richter Scale.

There is a lot to like about Incipio, with the company making some of the highest rated consumer cases on the market. They live up to all the promises they make, and seem to be driving the accessories market in new and different directions. That sure beats some of the early case designs that either added too much bulk or hard-to-remove plastics.

You can find several retailers selling dotties like this red dotties case for iPhone 3G, 3GS. Incipio sells these direct too, including this black dotties case iPod Touch with glow-in-the-dark dots. Both links will make it easier to find other models, but we haven't seen any iPhone 4G offerings there yet.