TECH SPOTLIGHT

Dandy for photos, iPhone add-on loses grip on the app side

Special to the Democrat-Gazette/MELISSA L. JONES
The Snappgrip includes an iPhone case, the grip itself with camera controls, a charging cable and carrying bag. An app is required for the grip to work. The app is available in the Apple App Store.
Special to the Democrat-Gazette/MELISSA L. JONES The Snappgrip includes an iPhone case, the grip itself with camera controls, a charging cable and carrying bag. An app is required for the grip to work. The app is available in the Apple App Store.

It isn't always easy snapping a photo with a smartphone.

Bitemyapple.co is trying to make it easier with a new product called the Snappgrip.

where it’s @

The Snappgrip is available through BiteMyApple.co and retails for $69.99. The Snappgrip app is free from the Apple App Store. More information is available at bitemyapple.myshopi….

It's a clever idea -- a grip with camera controls that not only makes it easier to hold the phone for photos but offers more features than found in the standard camera app on the phone.

The Snappgrip works with the iPhone 5 and 5S and consists of three main parts: a grip, a case and an app.

The case snaps onto the phone and serves as a means of protection as well as a holder for the grip. The grip slides onto the end of the case and features zoom buttons, an options dial and a true shutter button. The bottom of the grip has an on/off switch to power the Bluetooth signal that the grip uses to communicate with the phone. The grip's controls are powered by the app, which can be downloaded for free from the App Store.

The grip offers impressive abilities. It allows you to focus the camera much like a point-and-shoot, by pressing the shutter button halfway. The dial allows you to move between the night, landscape and portrait modes in the accompanying app. It also lets you switch to video. The zoom buttons move the image on the screen, but the photo taken isn't really zoomed in or out.

The grip's side includes a button that allows it to easily slide off the case. It can be replaced by sliding it back onto the case until it clicks. The grip's bottom includes the power button and a port to charge the grip using an included micro-USB cable. It even has a screw hole so you can mount the iPhone onto a tripod.

Snappgrip also has a nice side use. I was able to use it as a remote trigger for the camera. Because it works via Bluetooth, the shutter button on the Snappgrip works even from several feet away. So a user could position the iPhone and fire off the camera from elsewhere -- even in front of it. Talk about your power selfies!

The Snappgrip works great. Unfortunately, its usability is severely damaged by the accompanying app.

The Snappgrip app can be downloaded from the App Store and includes features such as continuous shooting, timer shots and the scene modes mentioned earlier. That's about the best thing I can say about the app. The fact is, the app really brings down the Snappgrip itself with its many, many flaws.

One problem is the app lacks compatibility.

The Snappgrip only works with the device's own app or a couple of third-party apps that barely function with it. You would think it would work with the iPhone's native camera app as well, but that isn't the case. It's a little frustrating because it means unlocking the phone and pulling up the app every time you want to take a photo, as opposed to just swiping up on the lock screen to get instant camera access.

But the biggest issue by far is the video. The grip is made so you can hold the camera horizontally; however, when it films, the app only films vertically. That means if you hold the phone horizontally to film, you get a film that's sideways.

I know, it's hard to believe the app is that -- OK, I'll say it -- dumb, but it is. I had that happen repeatedly, even though when I was filming the video looked to be normal in the horizontal position and the little camera icon was horizontal, indicating the (supposed) orientation of the video. It films just fine vertically, but vertical films are so, well, vertical.

The app also kept losing its Bluetooth connection, particularly if the phone went to sleep and had to be unlocked. Sometimes the app would work after returning to it, sometimes it didn't. A couple of times, it acted as if it was taking a photo, but nothing popped up. That happened in particular after I moved it from video mode back to camera mode.

The photo review needs a lot of work as well.

Yes, a user can touch the little preview in the bottom left corner of the toolbar and view the last photo taken. They can even hit the share button there to send the photo to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or email it. But users can't swipe from one photo to another. They have to hit the button in the top, left corner to go to a preview of the camera roll, then hit the photo they want to see.

Given that camera roll previews are so small, they're nearly impossible to review. So users have to pull photos up one at a time to view them. It's tedious and a bit annoying. It's easier to just leave the app and go into the Photos app that comes with the phone to review the photos taken.

The app needs a lot of work. It has issues that keep users from fully utilizing the Snappgrip and the convenience it could bring. Basic things such as video orientation and the ability to hang on to the Bluetooth signal need to be fixed before the app is worth the download ... and the download is already free.

The Snappgrip is a great product, and once they fix the app, the product will make taking those iPhone photos a lot easier.

Melissa L. Jones can be reached via email at [email protected].

SundayMonday Business on 06/23/2014

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