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Could your next real estate investment be in Raleigh, North Carolina.? Maybe it should be. It landed at the top of the "10 Real Estate Markets to Watch in 2012," a report by Inman News and Onboard Informatics, which helps put together those annual "Best Places" lists.

Turning a Kindle Fire into a child-friendly device isn’t so hard, thanks to the Kids Place – With Child Lock, a free app from Phoenix, Ariz.-based kiddoware. It creates a walled garden where only parent-approved apps live. No more accidental video streaming, in-app purchasing or inadvertent banner-ad clicks.

The holidays seem to start earlier every year. Yet, you've managed to make it to the week of Christmas without adequate holiday shopping and planning completed. No problem. Let these mobile apps help you turn Christmas chaos into an efficient last-minute experience. Bonus: These apps aren't just for the holiday season, but extend year round to procrastinators everywhere.

Going from zero to arguably the leader in smart phones in three years, Google's Android software has helped spread app fever to the rest of us who could not or would not buy that otherphone.

But even with Android's massive resources, the bundled apps are not always the best available. Mobile Gmail is terrific. Android web browsing? Not so much. Where's the mobile version of Google Chrome?

The who-needs-what list

Whether you have figured out what you're going to get everyone or not, Christmas List by Iwuana helps you organize gift giving by person or spending. It's free, but for $1.99, the Pro version lets you scan in barcodes to avoid typing plus you can share lists via email.

Get it here: Christmas List (Free basic version/Pro version costs $1.99)

Mall maps

Santa's Bag is a Christmas gift-list organizer that lets you track what you gave people last year, split a gift between recipients and backup data on Dropbox. You can also take a photo of a gift as a reminder.

Get it it here: Santa's Bag ($1.99) Mall maps