When it comes to camera phone More Pixel is not Equal to Better Pictures

The folks at Spotify have brought forth the next big iteration of their mobile app, this time make specifically for the iPad (of all shapes and sizes.) Here we’ve got not just a giant version of the original iPhone app (as they so cleverly alude to in the commercial for this app), but a brand new interface with many intuitive bits for a wholly intuitive setup. The iPad version of Spotify’s mobile app works with Spotify’s premium subscription like the rest of the mobile apps do, and here we’ve got exactly what the streaming music platform needed to stay strong in the iOS world, to stay fresh on fans minds.

The application as it stands today successfully presents a basic interface for you to use Spotify on the iPad. The iPad is a unique device, so says Spotify, so they wanted to create a unique application for it. This app allows you to work with AirPlay for wireless connections to your AirPlay-enabled speakers and has Retina-quality graphics for your iPad 3rd generation from 2012 to make full use of.

This application here in its initial iteration does not include connections to integrated applications like the iPhone version does, but will more than likely begin pushing such connections in the very near future. This is certainly a good starting point for the Spotify team and since it’s just as free to download as the iPhone version has always been, there’s absolutely no reason to update to it.

The question then becomes where it makes sense to update your desktop-only Spotify membership – that being the free one – to the $9.99 a month subscription to the premium service just to use this app. It’s a much more difficult decision than making that jump for your smartphone because the iPad is mobile, but certainly not as mobile as a smartphone. The decision likely has already been made for you – if you’ve got an iPad you’ve more than likely got a smartphone, but there are some people out there with one and not the other – believe it or not!

If you’re the sort of person who uses an iPad on the daily and are looking for a premium music streaming service to use with it, there’s no reason why this shouldn’t be it. Spotify presents a solid streaming service here, and this iPad interface for it is second to none. With application upgrades it’ll be that much better – can’t wait! Grab this application from the iTunes App Store now for free.

Story Timeline

• Updated Spotify app to bring ICS UI
• Boxee adds full Spotify catalog access
• Spotify premium service fails to deliver
• Spotify Play Button embeds music for free
• Spotify branded apps to come from McDonald’s, AT&T, et al
• Spotify iPad app captured by Mr. Filtercam
• Spotify updated for Android 4.0 ICS
• Spotify’s ICS upgrade brings the heat, we go hands-on
• Spotify readying direct rival to Pandora
• Spotify for iPad arrives fashionably late

Review of Spotify for iPad

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I’m one of the millions of smartphone owners addicted to Instagram, the free camera app that makes tweaking and sharing photos miraculously easy. While it’s wildly popular and the target of Facebook’s $1 billion takeover deal, Instagram isn’t the only camera app worth having.

I’ve had a chance to test a wide range of Instagram alternatives during choice picture-taking opportunities over the past few months, including my sister’s wedding in Hawaii in December and a trip to Lebanon this month.

Of the dozen or so I tested, here are four I find myself using again and again:

•  Photosynth by Microsoft Corp. Free. For iOS only (Apple’s iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch).

My favorite among the ones I tried, Photosynth lets you take 360-degree panoramic photos that become interactive on a smartphone or computer screen.

The app guides you as you stand in one place and capture photos in all directions. Then it stitches those images together to create a sphere-like panorama that viewers can scroll around in and zoom in and out.

You can share the panorama on Facebook, Twitter or Photosynth.net.

It takes a bit of practice, and it’s not an app I would use every day. But I found that in the right setting — such as Roman ruins by the sea in Byblos, near Beirut, or my sister’s beach wedding — the results can be breathtaking.

• TiltShift Generator by Arts & Mobile. Free for basic features, 99 cents for higher resolution and album upload. For iOS only.

Tilt shift is a camera effect that blurs the edges of a picture, creating an optical illusion that makes everything look miniature.

Instagram has that feature (it’s the droplet icon when you are taking or editing a picture). TiltShift Generator gives you more control.

You can control where and how much blurring to produce. You can also determine how much darkening around the corners you want to produce a vignette effect. You can also adjust the saturation, brightness and contrast.

• Hipstamatic by Synthetic LLC. $1.99 for basic features, with 99-cent add-ons to give you more imaging options. For iOS only.

I had a hard time figuring Hipstamatic out, but it’s worth the effort.

Unlike most filtering apps, you don’t adjust a photo after you’ve taken it. Instead, you choose different virtual lenses, flashes and film beforehand, and you can’t change the setting after you take the shot.

The app is not very intuitive, the settings are hard to keep track of and the accompanying guide isn’t very helpful. But once you get a sense of which virtual lens works best under which conditions, you can create stunning photos.

• PhotoToaster by East Coast Pixels, Inc. Free version called PhotoToaster Jr. Full version costs $1.99 and gives you more choices and control. For iOS and Android devices.

I love the ease of flipping through filters on Instagram until I see one that makes a photo pop, but often I want more control over specific effects.

PhotoToaster lets me do both. You can apply preset filters such as “Tuneup,” “Pro,” “Happy” and “Chill.” You can also tap a button and have more precise control over exposure, color temperature, light and other settings.

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