Posts tagged iPhone Apps
Plunderland for iPhone- app review
Jul 27th
Plunderland is Apple’s App of the Week this week. Does it deserve it? Yes and no. Developer JohnnyTwoShoes has made a solid effort to bring pillaging across the sea in the hands of eager gamers.
The premise of Plunderland is you are a ghost with pirates that sail across the sea to attack and sink enemy ships, pillage tribes people and take money from their monuments then make it to the next port. Sounds fun? Well, get used to it because that is what you do over, and over, and over again with little variety. Call me a stinker, but I don’t see the allure with this game.
Sure, the water physics are nice. You tilt the iPhone left or right to make your boat move in that direction. When there is a storm, etc, the water behaves in a more erratic manor, making maneuvering more difficult. Once you are on the high seas, you come across your enemy; the British warships. You have a couple ways to take them out. First is to use your ships cannon. You have a nifty way of angling the cannon to shoot your targets, just move your finger along the bottom and you will get a reticule via a line that helps your aiming. Release your finger and you fire your cannonballs. Second, you can use the enemies cannonballs against themselves. Before the enemy launches an attack, the cannon will puff smoke, that is your cue to ready your finger and deflect the cannonball back upon the enemy ship and with luck, split it in two!
I know, I make it sound exhilarating, and it is the first two or three times you do it. Sadly, Plunderland does little to keep your attention. Future attacks add blimps and more, but the fun is gone by that point. The attacking villagers is a simple “tap, tap. tap” on the totems to get money and fling some villagers around in an effort to extract some more dough. Again… zzzz…
There is nice upgrade system though, you can upgrade your ship, cannons and bowsprits by earning said money above. The game has excellent promise. The controls, physics and graphical style all lend them selves to a success. However, the bland I really, really wanted to like this game, being highlighted on Apple’s App Store, but alas, mateys, I just can’t bring myself to recommend this lack-luster treasure.
[$2.99- iTunes Link]
UPDATE: I had a delightful Twitter chat with the developers. I explained that I had played 50% thorough the game and became unchallenged with the levels and objectives. They understood and are looking at a way to unlock the more exciting and complex levels earlier for more “hardcore” gamers. I also said that when I find the time to complete the game 100%, I would update this review to include my findings. I am hopeful that by the time I do this, they will have some new content available. You can follow the developer on Twitter here.
Pros
- Great graphics
- Solid frame-rate
- Good physics engine
- Upgrade system
Cons
- Very, very, very repetitive
- Takes a while to become a challenge (the end of the second chapter)
Plunderland for iPhone- app review is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.
TiPb – The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch Blog
iOS 4 app updates: 1Password Pro, Dragon Dictation, BargainBin
Jul 24th
Just a quick update on some freshly released iOS 4 goodness today. As you know, Ally has been watching the App Store for iOS4 compatible updates and if you guys find anything especially awesome, feel free to leave it in a comment or send it to her in an e-mail (ally (dot) kazmucha (at) tipb (dot) com) and if we think it’s awesome too, we’ll include it in our next roundup!
1Password Pro
If you’re a 1Password desktop (Mac or Windows) user with a Dropbox account, 1Password Pro’s latest version is nothing short of a revelation. Just open it up, log into your Dropbox account, and all your passwords and secure data are automagically synced to your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch over the air (OTA). This is the big one. This is what all Todo, Notes, and every other app that should be everywhere needs to do, with every major online storage option. It’s the future.
Oh, and it looks great on Retina Display and works great with iOS 4 fast app switching as well too.
(And yeah, there’s even an Android version now for those who dual-wield).
[$14.99 - iTunes link]
Dragon Dictation
Sure, iOS 4 still lacks universal voice integration but luckily… wait for it… there are apps for that. Dragon Dictation is one of the big guns and it’s just updated to include Facebook and Twitter support, send text to the clipboard and paste into SMS. It’ll also be coming to the UK soon. (They’ve figured out brogue, apparently).
[Free - iTunes link]
BargainBin
App Advice’s BargainBin lets you set a price for an app (including free) and then alerts you when the app drops to that price. So, for example, if you know holidays usually beget sales and there’s a game that’s been just a bit too expensive for your tastes, you set it up in BargainBin and if it drops to your sweet spot, you’ll know about it and you can go get it. (And if you’re cheeky enough to have set BargainBin itself to free, here’s you’re alert — it’ll cost you nothing for a limited time).
[Free on sale - iTunes link]
iOS 4 app updates: 1Password Pro, Dragon Dictation, BargainBin is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.
TiPb – The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch Blog
Chain Link Pro for iPhone – App Review
Jul 24th
Chain Link is based on the concept of creating as many links as you can and dragging them into the vortex in the middle of the screen without disturbing any other types of links. The game starts off fairly easy and gets harder pretty quick. There’s also support for OpenFeint to share your scores with your friends and other Chain Link users. I found the game pretty addicting after a while. Hit the jump for more screens and a walkthrough.
When you first open Chain Link, you’ll be asked to choose a game mode. The differences are that in easy mode (static), the pieces won’t move by themselves. They stay in one spot, where in arcade mode, they’ll move around, making it harder to avoid collisions. Whenever pieces collide with another piece that isn’t a like kind, instead of creating a chain, the pieces that collide will shatter. You’ll also lose one of your lives. You get 3 lives. After your third collision, game over.
Besides having regular game play modes, you can also choose timed modes. The pieces will float up from the bottom and down from the top and you’ll have to try and coordinate chains as quickly as possible and drag them to the center.
All in all, Chain Link is a pretty decent game to kill time with. It gets hard pretty quickly and there’s tons of game play modes to keep you busy. There’s nothing more depressing than beating a game you like in a couple days and either having to wait for an update to add more levels or just retiring it altogether. Especially when it’s a game you enjoy. I don’t see this being the case with Chain Link. There’s a lot of different game play options to keep you busy for quite some time. I think adding a few more options and maybe more visually appealing menus could improve the user experience.
Pros
- Easy to play
- Lots of game play settings
- OpenFeint Support
Cons
- Some of the game play modes are a lot alike
- The addition of more shapes would be welcome in order to make game play just a bit more complex for expert players
- Main menu is somewhat cluttered
Chain Link Pro for iPhone – App Review is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.
TiPb – The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch Blog
iOS 4 App Updates: Foursquare, Pulse News Mini, Paypal, iTranslate, eBay Mobile
Jul 23rd
We’re still keeping our eye out for great iOS 4 apps that take advantage of the new APIs and features available to developers under iOS4. We’ve found a couple more good ones to share with you guys, and as always, if you see any good ones, drop ‘em in the comments so we can check them out too!
Foursquare
Even though Foursquare has already received a general update for iOS4, it seems they’re still adding new features. Along with several needed bug fixes, they’ve added support for in-app sms and e-mail as well as more support for iPhone 4 retina display. I was pretty disappointed in Foursquare for quite a while as far as the GPS refreshing and multitasking but it appears this version fixed most of my complaints. It’s nice to see they’re taking an active role in improving the overall user experience.
Pulse News Mini
I took a look at this app about a month ago. It’s still got a ways to come functionality, but its hands down one of the most gorgeous RSS apps available for iOS. I’ve found myself using Pulse for quick reading and using Reeder when I actually want to sit down and catch up on any missed RSS feeds I hadn’t had time to read. This version adds support for the iPhone 4 retina display as well as adding some speed enhancements. It also adds a cool feature where you can bump phones with a friend that uses Pulse and share your feeds and articles. Beats e-mailing them a link for sure.
Paypal
The Paypal app got a much needed update a few months ago that added more core functionality, but since then, it’s somewhat sat stagnant beyond minor bug fixes. It appears this version adds iOS4 support but Paypal hasn’t elaborated on exactly what that entails. I don’t believe there is retina display support (at least it doesn’t look any sharper to me). I’m assuming basic enhancements such as multitasking and better compatibility is what they’ve added. I had a few crashes with the Paypal app on iOS4 but since the update, it appears to be crash free.
iTranslate
I know there’s tons of translation apps out there, but iTranslate still remains one of my favorites. It’s simple and clean. This version adds support for the retina display for iPhone 4 users as well as fast app switching and in-app SMS. If you’re looking for a simple translator, it doesn’t get any easier than this app. There’s also a plus version and in-app purchase available for text to speech.
eBay Mobile
I’ve been a fan of the eBay mobile app since it came out. It’s been nice to be able to browse through auctions quickly on the go. This update adds support for fast app switching and high resolution images for iPhone 4 users. It also addresses some issues as well as adding an easier Paypal solution in-app. If you haven’t picked it up yet, it’s free. Check it out!
Hope you guys are having as much fun with iOS 4 as we are! Let us know your thoughts on these updates as well as anything you guys may stumble upon that we missed!
iOS 4 App Updates: Foursquare, Pulse News Mini, Paypal, iTranslate, eBay Mobile is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.
TiPb – The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch Blog
iBooks 1.1.1 hits App Store
Jul 20th
Apple has just set iBooks 1.1.1 loose in the App Store. A point release, it does sneak in some nice functionality none-the-less:
- Double-tap an image within a book to view it in greater detail.
- Experience books that include audio and video.
- Enjoy substantial performance improvements when reading PDFs.
- Look-up definitions to English words inside books without a specified language.
- Addresses an issue that may have caused some book downloads to not complete.
- Includes many stability and performance improvements.
If you’re trying it out, let us know how it works for you.
[iTunes, thanks @daveizzle!]
iBooks 1.1.1 hits App Store is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.
TiPb – The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch Blog
Camera+ for iPhone – app review
Jul 19th
Camera+ for iPhone is a photography application that allows you to take photos and edit them. tap tap tap claims Camera+ is “all about one thing – GREAT PHOTOS!” How does Camera+ hold up to this expectation? Follow along to find out.
When you launch Camera+, you will be looking at the back of camera with a view finder. Under the viewfinder, where there would normally be a screen on a digital camera, there are two options: take photos and Lightbox. Behind the camera, you can see a little of what your iPhone’s camera can see. Inside the viewfinder, you’ll see a very small version of exactly what your camera sees. Tap on the viewfinder or “take photos” to take a picture.
When taking a photo, there is a 3×3 grid to help line up your shot (optional). There is also a stabilizer which will not snap the picture until the iPhone is held still. This is great for low light situations or when you are zoomed in (up to 5x).
The Lightbox is where you go to view all the photos you’ve taken with Camera+. The Lightbox is designed with filmstrips containing 3 photos each and is very visually appealing. None of the photos save to your camera roll until you tell it to. This is great for keeping your camera roll clutter-free of photos you don’t want. Tapping a photo brings up options to edit, save, copy, or share. Double tapping a photo makes it larger and provides the same options.
There are 4 different ways to edit your photos: scenes, crops, effects, and borders. Scenes is similar to the different modes you might find on a digital point and shoot camera: auto, flash, sunset, night, backlit, portrait, beach, scenery, concert, food, and text. There are 9 different common crop ratios available. The 21 different effects are categorized as color, retro, and special. I am impressed with all the options and quality of these effects. They are fun and look great. There are 7 different borders to choose from. Most are very basic; the only “fun” one being “instant” which makes your photo look like it was taken with a polaroid camera.
Overall, I was impressed with Camera+. The plethora of good effects makes the app worth it alone. Camera+ does a great job of producing great photos.
[$1.99 - iTunes link]
Pros
- Unique UI
- 5x zoom, stabilizer, and grid available when taking photos
- Creatively designed Lightbox to scroll through pictures
- Many scene modes, crop ratios, borders, and effects
- Share to Facebook, Twitter, and Flickr
- Support for multitasking, Retina Display, flash, and front facing camera on iPhone 4
- Access photo library to edit photos not taken with Camera+
Cons
- Landscape only supported when taking and viewing photos
- Cannot view photos in full screen
- Saving a photo to camera roll removes it from the Lightbox
Camera+ for iPhone – app review is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.
TiPb – The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch Blog
Sex shock! Nudity disbelief! iChatr Chat-Roulette-style app for iPhone 4 pulled from App Store
Jul 18th
Apple has yanked iChatr — the chat-roulette-style app for iPhone 4 — from the iTunes App Store.
If you’re familiar with what goes on in these kinds of apps, the (predominantly male) nudity and sexual activity, then this probably doesn’t come as much of a surprise. If you’re not familiar, you probably downloaded it, became familiar quickly, and near instantly complained to Apple prompting the removal.
According to the developers, SKJM:
“The iChatr application has currently been removed from the App Store due to reports of a number of users exposing themselves during the random video chat sessions. We are currently discussing possible solutions to the problem with Apple.”
Jeff Scott from 148.apps adds:
you might as well stop now unless you have some wicked automatic genital recognition technology built in.
Good luck with that. And as to Apple’s second, open development platform, HTML5, we’re not sure that supports the porn-cam yet…
[148apps]
Sex shock! Nudity disbelief! iChatr Chat-Roulette-style app for iPhone 4 pulled from App Store is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.
TiPb – The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch Blog
