Green Friendly Apps for Summer 2013

Summer is here! You're probably looking forward to barbeques, sunblock and lemonade but don't forget to think about energy efficiency. It's easier than ever to save energy with these smartphone apps:

JouleBug is an energy savings game that pushes you to set good energy habits by observing how you act throughout your typical day. Players can earn reward badges as they change their habits, and can play with friends or individually. Free on iTunes.

If you need a good reason to be concerned about energy efficiency, the Just Science app is for you. Rather than just talking about the effects of global warming, this app shows them by showing recorded changes in land temperature from the past several centuries on a user-friendly color-coded map. Get it for free on iTunes.

Green Outlet helps you figure out which household appliances use the most energy in your home. The app allows you to calculate your average monthly energy cost, and even purchase carbon offsets from TerraPass.com when you have exceeded your recommended carbon footprint. Available on iTunes for 99 cents.


GasBuddy makes it easy for you to save your dollars at the pump by searching for the cheapest gas prices in your area. You can also use this app to find cheap fuel while on a road trip, or headed down the shore. Free on iTunes and Google Play.

What's your favorite app for the summer months?

Staying Strong With FitBit One and Apps for Healthy Living

The Car-Tel Communications team is "all pumped up" over National Fitness Month! In early May we started a fitness initiative to increase awareness about health and encourage our employees to stay active.Our focus is on staying strong, not skinny and we are using the FitBit One to track activity and sleeping patterns. Our fitness initiative will be ongoing for the next few months - you can keep tabs on our progress over at the Car-Tel Facebook page!

Whether you live at the gym or haven't been there in months, we know your health is important to you and we want to help you stay fit and healthy. You can check out the FitBit One at any of our stores in the coming months, and try these great apps that will help you shape up for less than the cost of your gym membership:

Skimble's Workout Trainer offer thousands of free workouts and programs to help you get in shape. Choose your practice from options like running, yoga, losing weight or building muscle.

Yoginis will love Daily Yoga All-In-One for its more than 300 poses, 40 yoga sessions and varying levels of difficulty. Get started with Downward Facing Dog, or work on perfecting your Firefly Pose.

Whether you're training for your first 5k or trying to PR in your next marathon, MapMyRun will help you get there. Though not just for runners, this GPS app will track mileage, calories burned, and more. You can even post your progress to Facebook and Twitter.

Because staying healthy is about more than just working out, Fooducate helps you make smart choices about what you put into your body. Scan the UPC code for detailed nutritional information, and find alternative options to the junk food.