Top 3D Printing Apps for Android and iOS

3D printing is now moving to new heights. It is going mobile and helping Engineers bridge the gap between virtual and physical worlds. The technology behind 3D printing is helping engineers convert their dreams into reality and rapidly prototype complex products and machine parts.

The mobile app revolution has completely transformed the area of 3D printing. There are several Android and iOS apps that let users on the go to view files, design and convert images from 2D to 3D printable files. 

If you need to work on your 3D projects while you are on the go, here are some interesting apps for Android and iOS that you might want to check out:

GCodeSimulator - 3D Printing

If you have 3D printer or work with 3D printer control files (gcode), this application is for you. GCodeSimulator can visualize Gcodes and simulate 3D print process. This application can show how print will look and check how print should turn out to be.  "GCode" is a programming language which informs 3D printers how to make a model. GCode Simulator recognizes the print speeds and can simulate the print in realtime.

MakerBot 

MakerBot mobile provides ease and convenience when it comes to 3D printing by offering quick access to everything from your mobile device and prepare digital designs for 3D printing. MakerBot Mobile lets you monitor prints using your MakerBot Replicator 3D Printer's on-board camera. You can access printer preferences, remotely print, pause prints, cancel prints, and start the filament swapping and extruder attachment process with MakerBot Mobile.

OctoDroid - 3D Printer Control

OctoDroid is specifically designed for remotely monitoring, as well as controlling your OctoPrint instances and supports all the functionalities that are needed for extended 3d printer usage. With OctoDroid, you can start a new print job according to your preference and stop print job in your absence. It is so easy-to-use and convenient that users don’t need a browser for checking the state of your current print.


Thingiverse

Makerbot’s Thingiverse allows discovering, making, and sharing 3D printable things a seamless experience. Considered as the largest 3D printing community in the world, Thingiverse strongly believes that everyone irrespective of their technical expertise or prior experience should be able to create 3D things. Thingiverse app lets users browse Thingiverse from the comfort of your phone.

Morphi

3D modeling + printing app to create 3D models (STL files) while on the go using touch, without wifi or a mouse. The app can be used with or without a 3D printer. Morphi has several uses including developing models, inventions and prototypes, making products. This app also acts as a teaching tool for Maker education (MakerEd) and STEAM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art + Math).

SketchUp

The SketchUp Mobile Viewer infuses life into your 3D models on your iPad or iPhone allowing you to open and view SketchUp models on the device whenever you want to view them. SketchUp lets you download models on your device from 3D Warehouse, Trimble Connect or Dropbox account for offline viewing. Several navigation features include multi-touch gestures for Orbit, Look Around, Pan, Zoom, and Zoom Extents, as well as a Camera menu to toggle between Perspective and Orthographic camera modes, and adjust the Field of View.

We hope that you have enjoyed reading these apps. Are there are any 3D printing apps that you would like to mention? Please let us your thoughts in the comments below.

About Anna Harris:
Anna Harris working as web content writer and a strategist for a major IT firm delivering the best hire web & mobile app developer services for all your varied business needs.

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Best App Analytics Tools for Winning Mobile App Developers

You may have built the best mobile application, having worked extensively on your exclusive app idea, getting the most stunning UI/UX mobile app design and the best developmental methodologies that is bound to create a flutter at the App Store. But have they actually lived up to your expectations? Well, App Analytics will say.

App analytics tools are the most trusted way to evaluate how your app has fared at the app store. This includes app downloads, figuring out why people are uninstalling an app, how to improve mobile app retention and where to spend time/money on marketing. Check out some of the most reliable mobile app analytics tools for your mobile application:

APP ANNIE (FREE & PAID OPTIONS)

Platform Compatibility: iOS, Android, Windows Phone, Amazon apps, etc.

This mobile app analytics tool provide analytics services and market intelligence for mobile app developers to just focus on making apps, rather than reports. From gender, age to income and education level of users, App Annie helps analyze cross-app adoption rates across app categories.

FLURRY (FREE)

Platform Compatibility: iOS, Android, Windows Phone, Blackberry, Mobile Web

HTTPS://DEVELOPER.YAHOO.COM/ANALYTICS/FEATURES.HTML#SEGMENTS=

Flurry, now acquired by Yahoo and a part of the Yahoo Mobile Development Suite is one of the oldest and most trusted app analytics platforms by mobile app developers worldwide. Besides, Flurry comes with ad network that allows you to get metrics on your ad performance and detailed user acquisition reports, besides solutions for any mobile device.

GOOGLE MOBILE ANALYTICS (FREE)

Platform Compatibility: iOS, Android 

Google naturally is the most familiar name when it comes to analytics for the Web. And since 2012, it is gradually moving into the Mobile space with its mobile analytics services in the same dashboard. On integration with AdMob, you can easily see the results of your paid campaigns.

APPLE APP ANALYTICS (FREE)

Platform Compatibility: iOS

This free app analytics tool from Apple for their iOS platform was launched in iTunes Connect. Although the tool is very limited compared to others, some of the key features are Filters (that allow you to filter metrics by things like app version), Sources (for measuring the results from paid and organic traffic sources) and Retention (a crucial signal of how good your app is, by estimating app usage duration).

LOCALYTICS (FREE & PAID OPTIONS)

Platform Compatibility: Android, Windows Phone, BlackBerry, Mobile Web

This mobile app analytical tool provides real-time analytics, remarketing data, attribution and more. What sets it apart from the rest in business is its unique messaging features.

COUNTLY (FREE & PAID OPTIONS)

Platform Compatibility: iOS, Android, Windows Phone, Unity, Blackberry, Mac, etc.

Popular as an enterprise solution, Countly comes with a real-time dashboard that besides being easy to read, gives you access to the data you need, at a glance. Moreover, it allows you to see in-app purchase data and claim to have SDKs for multiple mobile platforms.

APSALAR (FREE)

Platform Compatibility: iOS, Android

Focused more on advertising attribution, Apsalar helps enhance your marketing ROI by providing great marketing tools stuff like SmartTags. It gives you more detailed analysis of your app marketing efforts like where you should invest your money on.

Have any other mobile app analytics tools list to share? Do write to us.

About Anna Harris:
Anna Harris working as web content writer and a strategist for a major IT firm delivering the best hire web & mobile app developer services for all your varied business needs.

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Achievements & Advantages of Using MongoDB

MongoDB is a cross-platform, document-oriented database. Classified as a NoSQL database, MongoDB eschews the traditional table-based relational database structure in favor of JSON-like documents with dynamic schemas (MongoDB calls the format BSON), making the integration of data in certain types of applications easier and faster.

Originally developed as a component of a planned platform-as-a-service product, the company shifted to an open source development model in 2009, and the database has since been adopted as the backend software of numerous websites and services, including Craigslist, eBay and Foursquare.

• Store data of any type such as structured, semi-structured and polymorphic.
• Process large amount of information.
• Support current requirements of applications.
• Empowers enterprises to be more agile growing quickly.
• It is a document oriented database.
• It is flexible.
• Developers have same functionalities as compared to RDBMS.

Here are features of MongoDB:

#1 Document-oriented

Instead of taking up a business subject and breaking it into several relational structures, MongoDB can store the business subject in the minimal number of documents.

#2 Ad hoc queries

MongoDB provides support to field, range queries, regular expression searches. Queries can return specific fields of documents and user-defined JavaScript functions.

#3 Replication

MongoDB provides high availability with replica sets.

#4 Load balancing

MongoDB scales horizontally using sharding. The user chooses a shard key in order to determine the distribution of the data collected. The data is split into ranges (based on the shard key) and distributed throughout the multiple shards.

#5 File Storage

The storage engine is the primary component of MongoDB responsible to manage data. MongoDB provides a variety of storage engines which allows you to select the one that suits your application in the best possible manner.

#6 Aggregation

MapReduce can be utilized for batch processing of both data and aggregation operations. MongoDB provides three comprehensive ways of aggregation such as aggregation pipeline, the map-reduce function, and single purpose aggregation methods.

#7 Server-side JavaScript execution

JavaScript can be utilized in queries, aggregation functions, and directly sent to the database to be executed.

#8 Capped collections

MongoDB supports fixed-size collections called capped collections. This type of collection maintains insertion order.

#9 Sharding

MongoDB uses sharding, a method for storing data across multiple machines to support deployments with very large data sets and high throughput operations.

#10 Security

In order to maintain a secure MongoDB deployment, administrators need to implement controls to ensure that applications have access to the data only that is required. MongoDB lets administrators to implement restrictions for deployment.

Finally

MongoDB has been developed to perform fast (embedded documents), flexible (schema less), scalable, to minimize administrative tasks, and easy to learn. It comes with robust and high on performance tools for data analysis (aggregation framework).

Big companies are already using MongoDB. On the other hand, several cities are using a system comprising mainly of MongoDB and Hadoop which help analyze data and make decisions in order to improve the quality of life for their citizens.

About Anna Harris:
Anna Harris working as web content writer and a strategist for a major IT firm delivering the best hire web & mobile app developer services for all your varied business needs.

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Lenovo’s ThinkPad X1 Surface Super-Clone Can Add camera, Projector or Battery Modules

The ThinkPad X1 tablet could have copied the Surface Pro 4 and called it a day, but instead it built in more versatility.

 

Lenovo’s new ThinkPad X1 Tablet takes the Surface Pro 4 concept and does it three better, offering several modules that can add features to the basic, $899 tablet with keyboard. The ThinkPad X1 also debuts with USB-C ports that can handle power, data, and video.

The kickstand unfolds gently from the back of Lenovo's ThinkPad X1 Tablet.

The ThinkPad X1 starts as an 8.4 mm thin, 1.75-pound that fattens to 13mm and 2.4 pounds total when you attach the included keyboard. This is what you’d call the Surface clone part, but arguably with a much better standard keyboard. Even the basic features can be impressive: up to an Intel 6th-gen (Skylake) core m7 vPro CPU, up to 1TB of PCIe NVMe SSD, and up to 16GB of LPDDR3 memory. The 12-inch IPS display offers crisp Full HD+ (2160x1440 pixels). This tablet isn’t messing around. 

My favorite is the $279 Presenter module, which adds a tiny Pico projector and HDMI in/out. I’ve long envied this fun and handy feature on Lenovo Yoga Android tablets, but there’s no love lost for lugging full projectors on business trips.

Lenovo’s ThinkPad X1 Tablet gives Surface shoppers something to think about—a competitor that isn’t just a good copycat, but someone who brought something new to the mix. We look forward to seeing more Surface clones push on the concept during CES.

About Anna Harris:
Anna Harris working as web content writer and a strategist for a major IT firm specialized in hire iPhone app developer services for iOS Apps.

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Top Free, Exciting & Exclusive Android Apps of 2016

Featuring the best & exclusive Android games of 2016 to provide you the best options to showcase in your Android device.

 

UNSKILLED

As the walking dead returns in season 6 with new set of features, other zombie games hit the floor with new heights. Unskilled is a similar game claiming itself to be the best zombie shooter for mobiles till date

Download from Google Play

FIFA 16

FIFA 16 is a brand new soccer game for PC, consoles and Android devices, It's easy to play it on any Android phone or tablet, provided you must have free storage space of 1.4 GB. The game is excellent featuring all the details extensively, and don't forget it absolutely free.

Download from Google Play

Despicable Me

If you love these little, cute yellow creatures, then you'll definitley love Minions Rush. It's an awesome runner game, where you have to collect bananas while rolling, dodging, jumping and scrambling.

Download from Google Play

Alphabear

This is a very cute game, as on spelling every word a bear appears, On spelling longer words, the size of the bear also increases along with its cuteness.

Download from Google Play

Walking Dead: Road To Survival

TellTale's Walking Dead series is not to be missed, but this alternative is a turn-based RPG that focuses on the original comic books over the TV series, and in which your decisions will determine who lives and who dies. Kicking off at Woodbury, can you take on The Governor?

Download from Google Play

Hire Android Developers for developing amazing and exciting Android games. You can also suggest your version of Android games in the comments sections below.

About Anna Harris:
Anna Harris working as web content writer and a strategist for a major IT firm providing hire developer services for all the major operating systems.

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Xcode Tips for the Expert iOS Developer

Get the most comprehensive list of Xcode tips crafted by expert iOS to enhance iOS development proficiency, improve accuracy and save time.

We all know that Xcode isn't just all about coding. And especially for skilled iOS developers, Xcode is infused into everyday duties – be it coding, debugging, viewing source control differences to measuring app performance.

Check out this comprehensive list of Xcode tips crafted by expert iOS developer that besides enhancing your iOS development proficiency, will improve accuracy and save time as well.

Use Xcode's Open Quickly Shortcut to FIND YOUR FILES

One of the mandatory shortcut to be memorized before starting in Xcode is Open Quickly. Just like Spotlight Search feature in Mac OS X that is used to find files and apps, in Xcode the similar feature is called Open Quickly. But this shortcut works the best, if you know the filename or the name of a method/public variable in the file. At the same time, searching for a method or property with Open Quickly can be slow considering it has to do a project-wide index and search.

Use, Edit, and Add Actions to BREAKPOINTS

If you are an expert Xcode developer, Breakpoints is the feature that works best for you, especially when coders go through grueling debugging phase. Here using exception/error breakpoints helps debugger hit a breakpoint every time an error or exception is thrown in. Moreover, breakpoints can be transcended to the next level by editing – so as to add an action to them that can vary from debugger commands to log messages.

Use Xcode's Assistant Editor to DEVELOP WITH CONTEXT

Essentially one of the most useful tool in Xcode, the Assistant Editor helps open the next file you plan to edit, even though it might not always be completely accurate; however, the super intuitive menu system design ensures you almost always find a related file. Moreover, you can also tweak the Assistant Editor to display files based on common filters or navigate to a file manually.

Get BETTER CODE REVIEWS with Version Editor

Harness the power of Xcode's Version Editor to get better codes courtesy, its 2 powerful code reviewing features – Blame mode (for codes that are difficult to comprehend) and  Compare mode (that helps identify what's changed exactly in the code before you upload it).

Use Xcode Shortcuts and Code Snippets to CODE FASTER

Studies have shown that using keyboard shortcuts while coding using Xcode saves a lot of time and efforts; besides maintaining a logical flow of the code with least distraction. Check out this list of compiled shortcuts for your Xcode programming:

• ⌘ 0: Show/hide Navigator region
• ⌘ 1 through ⌘ n: Switch Navigator tabs
• ⌘ ⌥ J: Filter Navigator results
• ⌘ ⇧ Y: Show/hide Debug region
• ⌘ ⌥ 0: Show/hide Utility region
• ⌘ ⌥ 1 through ⌘ ⌥ n: Switch Utility tabs
• ⌃ 6: Jump menu for methods
• ⌃ 1: Magic Menu
• ⌃ ⌘ Up and ⌃ ⌘ Down: File counterpart navigation
• ⌃ ⌘ E: Rename symbol within scope (Note: No support for properties)
• ⌃ ⌘ Left and ⌃ ⌘ Right: Navigate file history
• ⌃ ⌘ J: View source of symbol
• ⌥ Selection: Vertical selection
• ⌘ ↵: Show/hide Assistant Editor (as mentioned above)
• ⌥ as modifier: Execute shortcut in Assistant Editor (as mentioned above)
• ⌘ ⇧ ] and ⌘ ⇧ [: Move to next/previous tab
• ⌘ ⌥ ] and ⌘ ⌥ [: Move line up / down
• ⌘ R: Run app
• ⌘ B: Build app
• ⌃ .: Stop app while running
• ⌃ i: Format code (code needs to be highlighted)

AUGMENT XCODE FUNCTIONALITY with Extensions

Missing any features you’d love to have in Xcode? Well, you can seamless add new or missing features to Xcode using Extensions, even though the extension ecosystem isn’t as robust or well known as other IDEs. The only notable point is that while most IDEs have an extension gallery built-in, Xcode doesn’t even document their extension APIs.

But these are not the last tips on the block. Have any more expert Xcode developer tips that the iOS developer community would benefit from? Do share with us.

About Anna Harris:
Anna Harris working as web content writer and a strategist for a major IT firm, providing hire web developer services for iOS, Android, Windows Phone and other operating systems.

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Tips to Build a Successful iPhone App

You are ready to take a plunge into the world of apps. Many people think that apps are all about technology and tools available out there. Well, you are sadly mistaken; technical knowledge alone will not take you a long way in the app world. There are several other important pointers that you should keep in mind. These important things will help you avoid mistakes in the iOS app development process.

Rise Above the Clutter, Stay Focused

Screen real estate is considered premium in an iPhone application. Everything boils down to reducing clutter and staying focused. Your app needs to stay simple without sacrificing on user friendliness. It does not need to be complex. Remember, in iPhone application success depends a lot on user experience. You can maximize your success rate by experimenting with different approaches to your user interface. Just work on the approach that allows you to conduct one task at a time, rather than doing multiple tasks to achieve goals.

Get Inspired, Improve Existing Apps

There are millions of apps out there. Your app idea needs to rise above the already existing apps. If you are just planning on creating an app that already exists, you are in for a tough ride. There is no harm in staying inspired from existing apps. Blindly copying other apps will not generate results. Instead you need to wonder how you could improve upon existing apps. Download all competitor apps and notice lack of functionality. This will allow you to improve your apps.

While staying passionate about your app idea will help you navigate through the iPhone app development process, however blind faith in your idea is not a good sign. You need to conduct an in-depth analysis of the market and make sure that the idea is worth building an app. Think objectively and look for reasons why the app might be a bad idea.

Consider the Platform-FIRST

iOS, Android, Windows or Blackberry: Which approach works the best for you? This is the most important question that any app developer will face. Don’t base your platform choice on sterotypes. If you are developing app for iOS, just because your key goal is monetization you are mistaken. Think about your target audience. While iOS rules the charts when it comes to USA, Android rules on a global scale and often in a higher margin compared to USA. So if you intend on publishing your app in multiple countries, consider Android over iOS. Whenever you make any decision relating to platform, think about different permutations and combinations. Keep in mind each and every alternative. If you adopt a one-sided approach, you are running the risk of severely reducing your app’s potential audience size.

Prioritize Design

Both Google Play and App Store are inundated with apps. The key factor is to design a compelling experience. Focus on simplicity and ease of use. Avoid fancy animations and graphics that don’t add any purpose to the overall functionality. Study how users interact with app and iterate as necessary.

Make Loading Fast

Remember, performance is the most crucial element of success in the mobile world. Not all users have high-speed internet access all the times. Don’t give them heavy apps that take excruciatingly long to download. Just like web sites, the rule of enhancing performance applies to the mobile app world also.

Finally

It’s not just the bugs or tech glitches that matter -- some of these tips can be crucial for making your app user-friendly. One of the most important aspects is to spend extra time testing your application before publishing it early. You don’t need to gain a bad reputation right from the word start.

How to Make an iPhone App
The 20 Best iPhone Apps to Download Now

About Anna Harris:
Anna Harris working as web content writer and a strategist for a major IT firm specialized in iPhone app development services for all the major iOS versions.

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