august2021 - 26

APPS WE LOVE
By Gail Perry, CPA, Editor-in-Chief
New
David Almonte, CPA, CGMA, Financial
Reporting & Analysis Manager at Amica Mutual
Insurance Company, said, " Several months ago
I picked up an Oculus system from a company
Facebook now owns. It was a big step for virtual
reality software and platforms in general. I have
had so much fun playing World Series of Power
with individuals all over the world, having my kids
swim with sharks and ride roller-coasters, take
educational helicopter tours of various countries,
joined virtual workout and boxing classes, sat
'front row' for virtual concerts, among many other
to dos. Highly recommend this as both a form of
entertainment as well as a great additional tool
in the education space for kids and adults alike. "
Sandi Leyva, president of Accountant's Accelerator,
told us, " I love my Ouraring. It's a wearable
ring that tracks heart rate stats, body temperature,
sleep, and workouts. It gives me 3 daily scores:
sleep, readiness, and activity. Not all that exciting
or new, but useful. "
We are accountants, after all, and Dan Nicholson,
CPA, CGMA, CEO at NthDegree CPAs, told
us about the modern finance app, CertaintyApp.
com - " A tool that converts your clients goals into a
solvable equation that shows how much more cash
flow they need to fund all their goals. That then
allows the CPA to show directly how their services
are contributing toward funding their goals faster. "
Chris
Frederiksen-Crawford CPAs, said, " The most
important new technology for me is being able
to use my phone hands-free, by receiving and
transmitting voice entirely through my hearing
aids via Bluetooth. This same technology allows
Frederiksen, CPA, co-founder of
Technology
FOR OUR APPS We Love column this month, we
are taking on the category of new technology.
For a long time, apps themselves were the new
technology. Now apps are evolving, and we're
looking at examples of new types of technology
we are seeing in your apps. Some of the members
of our CPA Practice Advisor community shared their
favorite new technologies, and we also explored online
for additional examples.
me to listen to television sound through hearing
aids and having total control of the environment. "
Brian Tankersley, CPA.CITP, CGMA, director of
strategic relationships at K2 Enterprises, shared his
shipping experiences. " I've had to ship a number
of packages to clients lately, and have been very
impressed with a web service called Shippo. The
product connects to your existing FedEx/UPS/USPS
shipping accounts, imports orders/shipments from
eCommerce solutions, lets you create shipment
templates for common orders, compares prices
from different carriers and services, prints shipping
labels on your laser printer, and even passes
through significant discounts on USPS, UPS, and
DHL shipments. I saved about 25% off of USPS
when shipping 14 packages this month, and it was
much easier to get the documents out and track
the packages in Shippo's web interface. The best
part of this service is that it's either free or cheap
depending on how you use it. If you use Shippo's
freight service discounts, the service is free; if you
use your rates, you pay $0.05/shipping label to use
this interface. "
Gary Boomer, CPA.CITP, CGMA, MAcc, visionary
and strategist at Boomer Consulting, Inc., said,
" Data and accountability are the themes in medical
devices and home automation. Some of the better
medical devices I have utilized are: Apple Watch
(EKG) and QardioBase (weight) and QuadioArm
(blood pressure). Home automation continues
to grow with all the major players: Apple Home,
Google Assist and Amazon Alexa. The integration
with smart lights, music and temperature controls
is growing in popularity. I utilize a Brilliant Smart
Home control switch to integrate and manage all
26 AUGUST 2021 ■ www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com
of the above. The challenge with smart lights and
switches comes with loss of an internet connection.
Some devices are better than others about
resetting automatically. "
Here are some additional examples of apps
representing new technology:
* Apps for getting around - beyond ride-sharing
apps like Uber and Lyft, there are car-sharing apps
including Turo and Zipcar and also the scooter and
bike apps such as Limebike and Bird. More and more
major forms of transportation (planes, trains, and
buses) are providing apps as well.
* Smartglasses - you remember Google Glass and how
that didn't seem to catch on in the marketplace?
The concept is still there, however, and the newer
smartglasses will actually look like glasses. Look
for miniature video overlays, and features like an
augmented Alexa allowing you to control your
home, make calls, and listen to music, which only
you can hear, navigation tools, and fitness add-ons.
* Biometrics apps for security not only include
facial recognition and fingerprints, but also voice
recognition and signature recognition.
* Look for beacon technology to change your retail
experiences in the near future. With Bluetooth
enabled, you can walk past a beacon in a store
and see an ad pushed to your phone alerting you
to a special sale or an intriguing purchase option.
Beacons also notice that you're spending a lot of time
browsing in the shoe department and can send you
notices later when a sale is pending.
This is just a sampling of new technology in
the apps world. ■
http://www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com
august2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of august2021
