50 new tech tools you should know about

New mobile apps, services, social networks and other digital tools pop up so frequently that keeping up with them is a near impossible task. Just when you think you're up to date, something newer and hipper comes along.

These apps and services can help you do everything from shooting better smartphone photos to cataloging your bottle-cap collection to finding the best pad Thai in your city. Not all of them are brand new, nevertheless we've probably listed some you haven't heard of. We hope you find them useful.

360 Panorama: Want to enhance your smartphone landscape photos? Android users interested in capturing and sharing 360-degree panoramic photos should check out this app, the first true panoramic-photo app for the Android Market.

Autostitcher: Another interesting piece of software for producing panoramic images on your iPhone. Does a very nice job with its stitching feature for a nearly seamless quality image and easy sharing with friends.

The parking signs around New York City

Can I Park Here Fewer things in life are more confusing that trying to decipher the parking signs around New York City. This new iPhone app allows users to photograph the parking sign for the area in question, at the time find out if they can park there and for how long. The app even has a timer that starts when the user parks and lets them know how much time they have left in that spot.

CardMunch: This mobile app for iOS from LinkedIn converts paper business cards into digital contacts. A new 3.0 update as well offers LinkedIn integration for connecting with just one click. A must-have for conference-goers and business trippers.

Catch: The productivity-app space is fast becoming crowded. Catch is one of the newer kids on the block and it too promises to help users manage the information overload. Freebie accounts let users upload 70MB of new content per month to a cloud service. Everything else will cost you. Available for iOS and Android, along with plug-ins for the more popular Web browsers.

Evernote Food: From the company that brought us the popular productivity tool comes a mini-version of Evernote aimed at storing, preserving and sharing our memorable food adventures. Available for iOS; just be careful not to spill sauce on your iPhone.

Find My Friends: Think the Find My iPhone app, however for people. Find My Friends allows iPhone or iPad users to easily locate others via via their Apple IDs and iCloud -- totally contingent, clearly, upon a close family member or friend agreeing to be tracked. Don't accept requests from anyone you don't want to know your whereabouts 24/7.

Flipboard: The world's first social magazine app has been turning heads for a few years now. What is new is that this popular e-zine reader for iPad is now available on the iPhone as then. The same great look and feel of Flipboard isn't sacrificed one bit on the smaller screen.

Frametastic: There are many mobile apps for framing multiple camera-phone pics, nevertheless Frametastic is one of the few free and extensive ones. It features lots of fun options to fool around with, plus easy exporting to Instagram or your other social networks.

Google Currents: A 'zine-like reader for mobile devices, Google's new application for Android, iPads and iPhones lets you explore online magazines and other content with the swipe of a finger.

GramFeed: Instagram has put all of its eggs in the mobile basket. However some Instragram fanatics want to see images on something larger than a smartphone screen. GramFeed is the closest thing I've seen to a Google search experience for those gorgeous filtered Instagram pics.

Hipmunk: In a sea of travel apps, Hipmunk stands out for its fun, interactive and deal-scoring features. Available for iOS and Android devices, it lets users overlay heat maps on destinations to determine neighborhoods with food, nightlife and shopping that best fit their criteria. Brand new to the app is a hotel search feature.

Instagram: Heralded by iTunes as 2011 App of the Year, Instagram looks to expand its horizons in 2012 beyond the iPhone platform to Windows 7 and Android systems. With 16 million users in a little over a year, and only a handful of employees, IG is proving to be the little social-photo engine that could.

LogMeIn: This service provides anytime, anywhere remote access to your PC or Mac via your iPhone or iPad. A pay version offers HD video access, file manager, cloud integration and 24/7 support.

My Secret Folder: The majority of my digital life is like an open book. Nevertheless all of us have something to hide: For instance, my Jonas Brothers uploads are off-limits to the world. My Secret Folder acts as a private, passcode-enabled app that stores pics, movies, notes, contacts and other things you don't want people to stumble upon. Best part is, if someone opens the iPhone or iPad app and enters the wrong passcode, the app will snap a picture of the culprit, tag a location to the incident and keep it on file for when you return.

Path: Is this exclusive, smartphone-centric service the then great social network? Only time will tell. Path 2.0 is elegant and intimate in both design and usability. Many have referred to Path as the "anti-Facebook" for its attempts to make social networking more personal by limiting users' friend lists and ability to share Web links. Since its relaunch last year, Path has experienced a thirtyfold increase in the number of daily users, according to its creators. Even though the app is free, users must pay for some features. Nevertheless the company said it will not include ads on the site. Path is available for iOS and Android devices and integrates with Twitter, Facebook, Foursquare and Tumblr to allow cross-posting.

SlowShutter: This camera app for iOS lets you fool around with light, blurring images intentionally. It comes with a Live Preview feature, which is helpful because a lot of figuring out what works so then using this app is trial and error. I especially enjoy using SlowShutter to experiment with light trails on my phone.

Spool: This app allows users to save articles and videos for later. No biggie, right? Here's where it impresses: Spool will access this content later, even if you're offline. Now you can catch up on kooky cat videos when you're out of network.

Total Recall: This powerful call recorder app for Android allows users to automatically or manually record phone calls. It as well works nicely for recording short voice notes, reminders, lectures, meetings, etc.

Tweetbot: This is my newest favorite full-featured iPhone Twitter client: a Twitter mobile app with an attitude. There are plenty of decent Twitter apps for iPhone, including the official version, nevertheless none seem to bundle the best of the best features with Tweetbot's polished feel. Worth a few bucks if you take your mobile tweetin' in all seriousness.

Voxer: Created by a former communications specialist with the U.S Army, Voxer is a walkie-talkie app for smartphones. It allows users to send instant audio, text and photo messages to friends. Messages stream live as you talk, and your friends can join live or access later. Available for iOS and Android.

Zite: Similar to the aforementioned Flipboard, Zite has been around for a while however only recently made its debut on the small screen. This news reader goes beyond manual customization and leverages smart research to intuitively fill up your feeds with content reliably relevant to your interests.

ZoomSphere: Imagine a Billboard Top 100 for social nets instead of songs. ZoomSphere provides especially detailed stats for major social networks like Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus and LinkedIn -- great for keeping up with surging brands and social-media megastars.