Smartphone App

There's a new device you might not want to blow off. Breathometer began taking pre-orders Wednesday for its keychain-sized breathalyzer device that plugs into a smartphone and tests a user's blood-alcohol concentration level. The Breathometer, which works in conjunction with a smartphone app, is taking reservations on Indiegogo . The Burlingame, Calif., company plans to begin shipping the device this summer if it can raise $25,000. PHOTOS: Tech we want to see in 2013 Breathometer says it hopes the device and app will help users drink responsibly.

I want to feel good for Nick D'Aloisio, I really do. It's not every day that a 17-year-old kid becomes a millionaire after spending off-hours while attending school writing code for a smartphone app. My petty jealousy aside, though, D'Aloisio's story got me thinking: Are there any other industries -- other than entertainment -- that would create opportunities like this? I can't think of any. First of all, there just aren't a lot of businesses that allow teenagers to participate, even on the periphery.

Chalk up another looming casualty of the Internet age: business cards. Ubiquitous as pinstripes, the 2-by-3.5-inch pieces of card stock have long been a staple in executive briefcases. Exchanging cards helps to break the ice and provides a quick reference for forgotten names. But to many young and Web-savvy people who are accustomed to connecting digitally, the cards are irrelevant, wasteful — and just plain lame. Diego Berdakin, the founder of BeachMint Inc., a fast-growing Santa Monica e-commerce site, has raised $75 million from investors without ever bothering to print up a set. He doesn't see the point.

Since the beginning of time, or at least until Sony rolled out the Walkman, listening to music has been a stationary experience -- you went to the source of the sound, whether it was a bunch of tribesmen beating their drums or the stereo system in the living room. But the Walkman and then Apple's iPod dramatically changed the way we listen to music. And now music apps are transforming the experience even more by turning smartphones into portable jukeboxes and radios. Because there are so many music listening apps coming out these days it's hard to keep track of them.

Can a smartphone app influence your dreams? That's what the makers of Dream:ON, a new app and mass-participation experiment available for iPhone users hope to find out. Dream:ON was designed by Richard Wiseman, a professor at the University of Hertfordshire in Britain, who said it may be possible to influence dreams by monitoring people's sleep patterns to discern when they go into REM sleep (when dreaming happens), and then play soundscapes designed to create a desired dream.  To use the Dream:ON app , you would select from one of several prerecorded soundcapes such as a peaceful garden (the gentle twittering of birds)

Smartphone users will be the first to know who Mitt Romney has chosen as his vice presidential pick, the Romney campaign said Tuesday as it unveiled a new smartphone app. Mitt's VP app, available for Apple and Android devices , promises “an exclusive notice of his VP selection before anyone else,” according to an email to supporters from campaign adviser Beth Myers. It will unveil “America's comeback team,” the Romney campaign's name for the GOP ticket. On the site for the app is this pitch: “It's a question everyone's asking: who will be Mitt Romney's VP?

Twitter plans to release an update for its Apple and Android apps Wednesday that will make it easier for users to open links from the apps' Timeline. The update would fix an annoying feature of the app that required users to go through two separate pages to open up a link. Currently, when users tap on a link, the tweet containing that link expands and displays a new page. Users then have to tap the link a second time before they are taken to the link's web page. 10 tech companies to watch in 2013 It might seem trivial, but heavy Twitter mobile app users will no doubt appreciate the faster process.

Facebook's decision to pay $1 billion in stock and cash to buy Instagram, a company with one product and no revenue, inspired many people to consider a new career writing smartphone applications. Others wondered whether the purchase was just the latest sign of a new dot-com bubble, with the mania this time inspired by social technology and mobile apps. The truth is that the deal is more a reflection of the evolving economics of the Internet than a sign that valuations have lost all connection to reality.

Reporting from Palo Alto Imagine if you could instantly see photos, videos and comments of friends ? and strangers ? at restaurants, ballparks, concerts or at more intimate gatherings such as birthday parties and weddings. Color, a Silicon Valley start-up, is about to release a smartphone application that does just that. And, if widely embraced, the free app for iPhones and Android devices could stretch social norms by bringing people together who are in the same physical place, not just hanging out together online.

If Hollywood remade "The Graduate" and set it in 1980, the one word the businessman would have for Dustin Hoffman's character wouldn't be "plastics. " It'd be "medallions. " That's because the single greatest investment you could have made over the last 30 years isn't in gold or silver or even Apple stock. It's in New York City taxicab medallions. Since 1980, New York's taxi medallions - essentially the license to drive a cab in the Big Apple - have appreciated more than 1,000%.

SAN YSIDRO - Two eternal truths about crossing the Mexican border: It's worth the drive to Rosarito Beach for Tacos El Yaqui. And coming back is hell. In the last several years, crossing the border from the Mexican side has become a test of nerves. Two-, three-, even four-hour waits are typical. As you burn gas, jockey for position in the lanes and swerve to avoid the vendors and begging children who weave on foot between cars, you are consumed by feelings of helplessness and rage that cannot be assuaged by all the striped blankets, Sponge Bob piñatas and plaster Last Suppers in the world.

The smartphone revolution has invaded every facet of modern life, even the sanctity of the saloon. But there are some useful applications that can take your beer-hunting into the digital realm. Apart from the all-purpose apps like Yelp and the social networks, here are a pair of useful options for your iPhone or Android device that can help you find places to drink, discover new beers, and even remember what was in last night's ill-advised flight of imperial stouts. TapHunter is an app that can help you find those elusive brews that you've been hunting.

There's a new device you might not want to blow off. Breathometer began taking pre-orders Wednesday for its keychain-sized breathalyzer device that plugs into a smartphone and tests a user's blood-alcohol concentration level. The Breathometer, which works in conjunction with a smartphone app, is taking reservations on Indiegogo . The Burlingame, Calif., company plans to begin shipping the device this summer if it can raise $25,000. PHOTOS: Tech we want to see in 2013 Breathometer says it hopes the device and app will help users drink responsibly.

A social travel guide that will change the way you decide where your next vacation will be. Name: Minube Available for: Android, iPhone, iPod touch, iPad What it does: The Minube app sets your sights on the world, literally, with pictures, videos and destination recommendations from its community of more than 500,000 real international travelers. It had a solid start in Europe and Latin America before launching in the U.S. Cost: Free What's hot: It's the best travel inspiration finder I've seen in a smartphone app. I love the versatility.

The new BlackBerry Z10 won't come to the U.S. until March, but it's already out in other countries and sales are hot, according to the maker. BlackBerry's new Z10 touch screen smartphone has gotten off to a better start in Britain than any of the company's previous models, it said. To be precise, the Z10 is "selling almost three times better" than previous BlackBerry models have in their first week, according to a Bloomberg report that cites company Chief Executive Thorsten Heins as the source.

Twitter plans to release an update for its Apple and Android apps Wednesday that will make it easier for users to open links from the apps' Timeline. The update would fix an annoying feature of the app that required users to go through two separate pages to open up a link. Currently, when users tap on a link, the tweet containing that link expands and displays a new page. Users then have to tap the link a second time before they are taken to the link's web page. 10 tech companies to watch in 2013 It might seem trivial, but heavy Twitter mobile app users will no doubt appreciate the faster process.

I want to feel good for Nick D'Aloisio, I really do. It's not every day that a 17-year-old kid becomes a millionaire after spending off-hours while attending school writing code for a smartphone app. My petty jealousy aside, though, D'Aloisio's story got me thinking: Are there any other industries -- other than entertainment -- that would create opportunities like this? I can't think of any. First of all, there just aren't a lot of businesses that allow teenagers to participate, even on the periphery.

Ben Chinn likes to text as much as the next guy — he just doesn't like to pay for it. Chinn, 37, sends most of his text messages free of charge with Google Voice and a smartphone application. He also pays $5 a month for up to 200 messages on his AT&T mobile phone plan. "With everything with the mobile carriers, I feel I'm getting nickeled and dimed," said Chinn, of San Francisco. "I resent paying so much for text messaging, and I feel that it's not a reasonable price to pay for something that costs the carriers next to nothing.

If Hollywood remade "The Graduate" and set it in 1980, the one word the businessman would have for Dustin Hoffman's character wouldn't be "plastics. " It'd be "medallions. " That's because the single greatest investment you could have made over the last 30 years isn't in gold or silver or even Apple stock. It's in New York City taxicab medallions. Since 1980, New York's taxi medallions - essentially the license to drive a cab in the Big Apple - have appreciated more than 1,000%.

The L.A. Auto Show is just around the corner, and it's sure to be packed with exciting cars. Many of them will feature new technologies geared to make the cars run more efficiently and smoothly. But what about for the driver, many of whom will have smartphones packed with apps that could make driving a little easier? Here are five free smartphone apps that could help enhance the drive and perhaps save you some money: GasBuddy Bargain hunters will want to download GasBuddy.