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Turn your iOS device into a killer Craigslist companion
Lifelike Craig is one of many apps that let you browse and search ads, create and post new listings, and even snap photos to go with them.
Lifelike Craig for iPhone and iPad lets you browse listings in style and create your own--complete with photos!
(Credit: Screenshot by Rick Broida)I'm a bit of a Craigslist junkie. I've used it to buy everything from a piano to a loft bed to a go-kart, and to sell or give away a host of unwanted items.
But despite its spartan interface--or perhaps because of it--the service isn't particularly user-friendly. For one thing, it doesn't let me save individual listings. And adding photos to my own listing means copying them over from my camera, resizing them, and on and on. Hassle city.
That's why I'm jazzed about apps like Lifelike Craig HD, which can turn an iPhone, iPod, or iPad into a kind of mobile Craigslist companion.
For starters, Lifelike Craig gives Craigslist a decidedly newspaper-style makeover, with ad pages that look like they came straight out of the Classifieds section. (It reminds me of how Early Edition gives the newspaper treatment to RSS feeds.) If you've ever turned your nose up at Craigslist's ugly, all-text listings, you'll appreciate this visual flair.
Like Craigslist itself, the app provides some nice filter options for your search results. You can search in the title only or the entire post; limit results to ads that have accompanying pictures; remove ads that include specific keywords; and specify a minimum/maximum price range.
But here's my favorite feature: the ads you tag as favorites appear circled in red "marker" on the main listing page--just like in a real newspaper. This is a killer way to keep tabs on the ads you've looked at and/or want to revisit.
Lifelike Craig lets you sign into and manage your account, deleting or editing your ads as needed. Even better, you can use it to create new ads, complete with photos. (If you have an iPhone, iPad 2, or current-gen iPod Touch, you can even snap photos right on your device--a huge time-saver.)
For just $2.99, Lifelife Craig makes Craigslist easy, mobile, and, to my thinking, a lot more fun. Of course, it's not the only Craigslist app out there. Other options include Craigslist Pro (99 cents), CraigsEZList Pro ($1.99), and CraigsMobileList (99 cents).
If you've tried these or other Craigslist tools, hit the comments and let me know which one(s) you like best!
