There are some surprising, and surprisingly practical, apps in the Novelty category of the Amazon Appstore. For example:
3D Level(4.5/5 stars, currently FREE) – No need to dig around in the toolbox next time you need a level; just fire up 3D Level. The simple interface makes measuring inclines easy. Use it around the house to straighten out a wall hanging or balance an uneven table, or play with it at parties to impress your friends.
Real time 3D interactive graphics3D Level features an animated 3D model of a level with two traditional tubular bubble indicators for the first two dimensions and a bowl-like indicator for the third. Using your phone’s accelerometer, the indicators move in real time as the [device] rotates, just like a real level.
Additional featuresGraphics can be customized with six different color themes, from “sea” (blue) to “blood” (red). Grid lines spaced at 15-degree intervals can be turned on for precise measurements.
EZ Ruler – Kindle Fire Edition (3.5/5 stars, currently FREE and currently comes bundled with an Amazon MP3 Store $1 credit) – Note that the most negative reviews on this app are from users who didn’t understand how to use it, or were using the Kindle Fire Edition on a phone. From Amazon:
A simple and easy to use ruler. Everything you need, nothing you don’t.
*In units of centimeter and inches. *Ruler scrolls continuously. *Comes with a movable indicator for precision readings. *Ability to switch from inch to cm on the fly. *Beautiful graphics: metal ruler on wood grain background.
Amazon reviewer David Lung says, “cool ruler, good design, and as the name states, easy to use! I like the sliding indicator for a more precise measurement.”
SAS Survival Guide (4.5/5 stars, currently priced at $5.99 and currently bundled with a $1 Amazon MP3 Store credit) – This app could literally save your life or the life of a loved one if you’re lost or stranded, or facing a survival situation. It not only provides written and video how-tos, but includes functionality that will translate text you enter to light-up morse code to signal for help, turn your Fire into a sun compass to help get your bearings, and more. From Amazon:
For over twenty years, the SAS Survival Guide has been the definitive guide to surviving any situation, anywhere in the world. Now, for the first time ever, the million-copy bestselling book has been reinvented for Android.
Written by former SAS soldier and instructor, John “Lofty” Wiseman, this application brings you the elite training techniques of Britain’s toughest fighting force in a highly accessible form. Now you can take the original set of world-class survival skills with you anywhere in the world – from the peaks of Kilimanjaro to the deserts of Kandahar…or to your closest national park.
Features include:
* Full text (400+ pages) of the bestselling book optimized for Android * Free download of 16 videos providing invaluable survival tips from Lofty himself * 29 Photo galleries of edible, medicinal, and poisonous plants * Morse Code signaling device * 100+ question quiz to test if you’ve got what it takes to survive * Survival Checklists * Sun Compass * Search tool to scan entire book by subject * Extreme Climate Survival – sections on surviving Polar, Desert, Tropical, and Sea * Comprehensive First Aid section
This last one is a real mind-blower, but reviewers have said it works. Anti-Mosquito (4/5 stars, currently priced at 99 cents and currently comes bundled with a $1 Amazon MP3 Store credit) is an app that makes your Fire emit a high-frequency sound that’s outside the normal human hearing range, and tricks biting mosquitos into thinking there are enemy insects in the area. From Amazon:
Did you know that only female mosquitoes bite? Did you also know that mosquitoes stay away from certain sonic frequencies? This app takes that knowledge to heart, and turns your Android device into an insect deflector. Anti Mosquito generates two male mosquito frequencies and one dragonfly sound, all of which repel biting female mosquitoes and similar small insects. You may not hear it, but the action is on, even when the screen is turned off! Effective, chemical-free, and safe to use around children and pets, it also doesn’t make you smell like insect repellent.
Now you know: your Kindle Fire is not only an entertainment and productivity device, but a level, a ruler, a survival toolkit and a mosquito repellant!