Pictwo is a photography app for your iPhone that lets you combine two photos into a layered composition, giving your photos a new artistic flair. Pictwo comes equipped with several textures that you can combine with your photos so that you aren't only limited to the photos in your Photo Library. You can also mask out areas of the top layer to better blend your images together.

To create your photo, you must choose which two photos you are going to use from either your Photo library or Pictwo's included textures. The last step in creation lets you erase parts of the top image, so keep this in mind when deciding which photo to put on top. The first photo you select is the top image.

After selecting your photos, you can pan the photos around to fine tune how you want the square crop to look. Yes, your final image must be a square.

The third step to creating your image with Pictwo is to select a blending mode: normal, multiply, color burn, color dodge, luminosity, overlay, darken, lighten, or soft light, and the next step lets you select its opacity.

The next step in the process is what really makes Pictwo a worthwhile app in my opinion -- blending. At this screen, you can erase sections of the top layer to improve the look of your photo. The brush size and opacity can be adjusted, but you cannot zoom in for better detail.

One reason you may want to erase some of your top layer is when using textures with portraits. Textures can be a great enhancement to your photo, but they typically aren't flattering on faces. In the first screenshot below, I erased the texture from my daughters face.

Once your done with your creation, Pictwo lets you share to Twitter, Facebook, Twitter, Email, or "Open in..." another app. Unfortunately, Pictwo doesn't have compatibility with all photography apps, not even the extremely popular Instagram.

The good

• Easy to use
• Includes 15 textures
• 9 different blending modes
• Eraser feature to blend images

The bad

• Must crop photo as a square
• Can't zoom in when erasing top layer
• Can't "Open in..." Instagram

The conclusion

Pictwo is a really great, and specialized photo editing app for the iPhone. Personally, I will primarily use it in combination with the included textures and may even go on a hunt for additional textures to add to my Photo Library. I've recently become very interested in textures and find Pictwo to be a great way to start experimenting with them before moving on to more sophisticated techniques with Photoshop CS6.

Note: Pictwo is currently 50% off for a limited time.

$0.99 - Download Now

The Addo Slate Shield Case for iPad is a hard case with a couple of really convenient extras. First, it has a strap on the back that lets you easily carry your iPad around single-handed. Second, it has a kickstand that lets you just as easily prop your iPad up for work or entertainment.

The hand strap on the Addo Slate Shield Case for iPad is connected to a 360 degree swivel that allows full rotation from landscape to portrait. That means, whether you're walking around the job site filling out forms or lounging around home gaming, you can angle it just the way you like it for ideal viewing and tapping.

The kickstand on the Addo Slate Shield Case for iPad can likewise be rotated so you can set your iPad in either landscape or portrait mode for everything from work to play, FaceTime to productivity.

Alas, there's no handy stylus holder on the Addo Slate Shield Case for iPad the way there is on some other, similar cases.

Getting your iPad in and out of the Addo Slate Shield Case for iPad is simple enough. Just slide it in and seal the velcro. Getting it out is just as easy. All the ports and buttons that should be cut out are, and while you might have trouble with some of the chunkier power and media cables, any Apple-like dock cable will work fine.

The exterior of the Addo Slate Shield Case is reinforced ABS plastic to protect your iPad from bumps and gouges, and the interior is line with soft, plush material to keep it safe from scratches.

The good

• Hand strap swivels to any angle
• Kickstand works in both landscape and portrait
• Easy to insert and remove iPad

The bad

• Extra features means extra bulk compared to skin cases
• No stylus holder

The conclusion

I really like the Addo Slate Shield Case for iPad. The swivel hand strap is a feature I really appreciate, as is the kickstand working in both landscape and portrait. The construction is solid and even though the Addo Slate Shield Case for iPad is bulkier than a straight up skin case without all the extra amenities, their usefulness far outweighs any extra bulk in this case.

$46.22 - Buy now

Complete guide to Siri commands for maps and locations

Siri isn't only your digital assistant, it can be your digital co-pilot as well, helping you find where to go, how to get there, and what else you can do along the way.

Right now, Siri location services are only available in the U.S., but come iOS 6 this fall, Apple will be expanding it to many more countries, and integrating Siri with new features, like iOS 6 Maps' turn-by-turn navigation.

In the meantime, here's what you can do with Siri and Maps right now.

• How to find places with Siri
• How to find local restaurants and businesses with Siri
• How to get directions with Siri
• How to find your way home with Siri

How to find places with Siri

Siri can find places for you, including everything from Starbucks to the home or work addresses of your contacts.

1. Hold down the Home button to activate Siri.

2. Tell Siri the name of the place you want to find. For example: "Where is Starbucks?"
3. Wait for Siri to show you the location on the map.
4. If there are multiple locations, Siri will show you a list to choose from. Tap the one you want, and the location will then be shown to you on the map.

How to find local restaurants and businesses with Siri

You don't have to know the exact name of a restaurant or business to find it with Siri. You can also search based on category.

1. Hold down the home button to activate Siri.

2. Tell Siri what type of business or restaurant you want to find. For example, "Chinese restaurants".
3. Siri will show you a list of places that match your criteria. Tap the one you want, and the location will then be shown to you on the map.

How to get directions with Siri

Once you've found a place, Siri can also show you how to get there.

1. Hold down the Home button to activate Siri.

2. Tell Siri the name of the place you want to go to. For example: "How do I get to Starbucks?"
> Wait for Siri to show you the location on the map. If there are multiple locations, Siri will show you a list to choose from. The chosen location will then be shown to you on the map.
3. Siri will then present you with directions from your current location to your destination.
4. Tap Start in the upper right hand corner to begin your trip.

Siri will default to your current location but you can change it if you'd like by editing it just as you would when using the Maps app directly. Likewise, you can choose different locations and destinations by tapping on alternate pins, just like you would in Maps.

How to find your way home with Siri

Siri also makes it easy to return home from any unfamiliar place you might have visited (or in the event you get lost).

Before Siri can do this, you'll need to make sure that you have your home address programmed into your contact card and that you've got it linked up with Siri.

• How to set up, configure, secure, and start using Siri

1. Press the Home button to activate Siri.

2. Tell Siri to take you home. For example, "How do I get home?"

3. Wait for Siri to launch Maps and give you the route.
4. Tap Start in the upper right hand corner and you'll be on your way.

How to get more help with Siri

If you still need help with setting up or using Siri with your iPhone Contacts, or any other Siri feature, head on over to our Siri Forum and ask away!

• How to set up, configure, secure, and start using Siri
• How to call, message, and email your contacts using Siri
• How to set alarms and timers using Siri
• How to set reminders and update task and to-do lists using Siri
• How to create, view, update, and cancel calendar events using Siri

It's been over a year since iCloud was announced and Apple's previous online service, MobileMe, was scheduled for decommission. Well, today's that day. Apple has now officially closed its MobileMe service.

If you haven't already retrieved any outstanding information stored on MobileMe, now is the time to get it out of there. Apple has already closed down the syncing service and the iDisk and MobileMe Gallery apps have now vanished from the App Store.

Luckily, if you have forgotten to get your data over to iCloud, you can still get it. Apple has left the ability to retrieve your data right from the MobileMe home page. If you need to use it, don't delay any longer; it will not be around forever so take this as your last chance.

MobileMe launched way back in June 2008 alongside the iPhone 3G. It had a lot of problems back then and even spawned a Steve Jobs tirade against the team responsible for the coding of MobileMe. After numerous reports about crashing servers and failed logons, he was reported to have held a meeting with the MobileMe team. He asked them "Can anyone tell me what MobileMe is supposed to do?" When one of the team explained the service, Jobs shot back: "So why the f**k doesn't it do that."

Thankfully we now have a much better service in iCloud which is now reliable, fast and much more in-depth. If you haven't setup your iCloud account yet, we have you covered. Check out our ultimate guide to iCloud which covers every aspect of the iCloud service with tutorials for each part.