App Review: InterfaceLIFT 18

Wallpaper apps are a dime a dozen on webOS, and on Android and iPhone too for that matter, but InterfaceLIFT is a cut above the rest. InterfaceLIFT draws its images from the online gallery of the same name (InterfaceLIFT.com), a site with thousands of images of awe inspiring beauty, contributed by highly skilled photographers using the best equipment. They really are among the best wallpapers you will find anywhere and the app features a higher level of functionality than most wallpaper apps could dream of.

When you load the app, it shows you a feed of the latest images uploaded to the site, with thumbnails. It will also show you at the top any images you have marked as a favorite in the app. You can sort the feed by date, downloads or just mix it up with a random sort. You can even search for something in particular, and it will separate your results by photographers, tags, and wallpapers.

Even the tags are categorized by color tags, size tags, location tags, and more. Then within each category, the tags can be sorted alphabetically or by quantity. Then if you eventually find that you have a favorite photographer, you can browse and sort them too. Ever present buttons along the bottom of the screen lets you switch between views of tags, photographers or the feed of latest uploads.

When you view an image, it will show you the photographer’s description of the scene and you can either tap a link to see more from that photographer, add it to favorites, or tap the image again to see it full screen and save it as your wallpaper. It will automatically resize the image to the perfect fit for your screen.

If you really like the images you see, you can go to the interfaceLIFT website to download them for your computer or use a desktop widget for your Mac or PC. There’s even a Google Gadget. A drop down menu under each image lets you pick the perfect size for your screen, from the smallest netbook or smartphone screen to the biggest behemoth cinema display or even dual displays.

The only downside to the webOS app is not a deal breaker. Once you save an image as your wallpaper, you will not be able to find in your photos app. The developer is working to find a solution to that problem but for now it will not be easy to use the image for anything other than your wallpaper. There is also no sharing option within the app so you cannot Tweet your favorite images or post them to Facebook, and you will not be able to email it to yourself or your Evernote account or other such file storage system. At least not very easily.  You will either have to go into your favorites within the app, view it full screen and take a screen shot, or connect your device to your computer as a USB drive and look for the file in the Interfacelift folder.

Even with these problems, the database of images is vast enough, the quality of the images superb enough, and the usability of the app great enough, that you will not need any other wallpaper app. Unless you want pin up girls, then you might need an alternative. InterfaceLIFT is available in the webOS App Catalog for the low low price of free.

Pros

Stunning images Browse and sort by tag, photographer or recently posted Just type to search Save your favorites

Cons

No sharing options Once saved as wallpaper, the images don't show up in the photos app

Score

4.5