Snap Judgments

FREE DAILY TRENDS

21 MAY 2013

Park It

New apps help drivers locate parking spots

13 MAY 2013

Spot On

Free Wi-Fi hotspots are emerging in atypical venues

9 MAY 2013

Apps Against Extinction

New mobile campaigns protect and build awareness of endangered species

25 APR 2013

IPSo Facto

Indoor Positioning Systems are the next frontier in mobile navigation

24 APR 2013

Get Psyched

Virtual therapy is bringing emotional healing home

19 APR 2013

Tipping Point

New technologies advance the art of appreciation

17 APR 2013

Make Some Noise

Digital tools simulate aural environments to boost listeners’ productivity

12 APR 2013

Getting Cloudy

The cloud yields a new generation of online organizational tools

29 MAR 2013

Small Gestures

Forthcoming wireless devices control computers through physical movements

21 MAR 2013

Lighten Up

LED light bulbs are getting cheaper, subtler, and more efficient

20 MAR 2013

What’s the Password?

New gadgets help users keep their online passwords secure and organized

18 MAR 2013

Close Encounters of the 3D Kind

New technologies are poised to make 3D printing more accessible

14 MAR 2013

Full Alert

Sensory alert technologies keep users apprised of physical and social stimuli

8 MAR 2013

Whose Vine Is It Anyway?

Novel digital tools illuminate the emergence of Vine

6 MAR 2013

Ain’t No Dummy

High-tech mannequins enliven brick-and-mortar shopping

5 MAR 2013

Crowd Control

New apps help commuters avoid congestion

28 FEB 2013

(Sm)art Galleries

Museum are using apps to enhance the visitor experience

27 FEB 2013

Snap Decision

New digital tools facilitate crowdsourced decision-making

26 FEB 2013

On the Road

Automotive marketing shifts into high gear

22 FEB 2013

Summing Up

Apps use algorithms to distill content into key points

Barely 18 months old, Instagram stole headlines with Facebook’s costly acquisition. Now, with over 50 million registered users and roughly five million more joining each week, the photo-sharing startup is here to stay. Tapping into this relatively new audience, digital platforms, brands and music personalities are creating contests around the visual social network, elevating everyday mobile phone photographers into art stars.

InstaDerby: Perfect for the photographer with a competitive spirit, new website InstaDerby challenges Instagram users to photograph and submit artistic images based on a weekly theme. From “chicken” to “robot” to this week’s “blue,” contestants snap their interpretation of the assignment, upload the photo, and then hashtag it. Entrants must then accumulate as many votes as possible by sharing the pic with their Instagram network, family and friends. The “Top 100 Stallions,” or photographers with the most votes, are featured on the InstaDerby homepage and leaderboard, and the winning Stallion is awarded an Instagram-themed prize like credits towards sites such as StickyGram, CanvasPop and InstaTees.

#WDESIGN: Instagram NYC and New York’s W Hotel partnered to host the city’s first ever Instagram photography show, "WDESIGN: An Instagram Exhibition.” Six participating Instagrammers were chosen for work that uniquely captured “the different elements of New York City: architecture, street art, patterns, and design,” as explained by Instagram NYC founder Brian DiFeo. Meanwhile, anyone could submit a photo with the hashtag #WDESIGN for a chance to have their city portraits shown in the exhibition. Even those who didn’t make it were entered into a contest, in which the grand prize was a two-night stay at the W in Times Square—a location seemingly made for ’gramming.

#IWONTGIVEUP: As one of the most popular users on Instagram, musician Jason Mraz launched a contest directed towards his large network of followers. For the release of his latest single “I Won’t Give Up,” fans were encouraged to visually translate the song into one photograph and post the picture to Instagram under the hashtag #IWONTGIVEUP. After scouring thousands of entries, including ones by celebrities like Selena Gomez, Mraz chose his 25 favorite submissions and had them printed on 20”x20” canvases provided by CanvasPop. The winners were invited to see their work on display at Animazing Gallery in New York City and received a print copy signed by Mraz in-person.