Tag Archives: Apple

Microsoft’s mobile reboot

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Critics, analysts and carriers have all lauded Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7, the company’s latest attempt to reclaim ground in the mobile space. But in a field increasingly dominated by Apple and Android, the biggest name in personal computing is still far from a major player.

Opening day sales figures for the phone line were anemic, coming in at a reported 40,000, despite a lavish marketing campaign and worldwide media events. (To put that in perspective, Apple sells roughly 270,000 iPhones per day.) But the early numbers don’t necessarily tell the full story.

Read more at Daily Variety

 

App review: Let’s Golf! HD

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There aren’t a lot of golf gaming options on the iPhone or iPad yet — and Let’s Golf is one of the better ones. It’s good, but not great, and often seems to lift elements directly from Sony’s popular Hot Shots series, rather than taking any chances of its own. It offers plenty of options, though, and will keep casual fans of the greens happy. If you’ve got the iPod/iPhone version of the game, there’s no reason to upgrade, but if not, you won’t regret the $5 spent here.

Read more at Common Sense Media

App Review: Talking Rex the Dinosaur

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There’s really nothing in Talking Rex the Dinosaur that Outfit7 hasn’t done in any of its six other “Talking Friends” apps. The main purpose of the series is for an animated on-screen character to repeat what you say to it in an altered voice. It’s a fun diversion, with a few features thrown in on the side — like feeding your dino a steak or playing a bit of catch with it — but it’s a one-trick pony that eventually does get old (generally much faster for adults than for kids). Still, the fierce T. Rex is bound to catch the eye of young dinosaur enthusiasts. The intensity of the animations might be a bit too much for the very young ones, though.

Read more at Common Sense Media

App Review: Jack and the Beanstalk 3D

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Jack and the Beanstalk 3D is a fresh take on a classic children’s tale, with bells and whistles aplenty. And what it does, it does quite well. The animations are beautiful. The control given to users over how fast or slow those animations run is engaging. And the background music, from Richard M. Sherman (composer of “It’s a Small World”), is charming. We only wish that the story itself was given a little more prominence and the learning potential of the app was better exploited.

Read more at Common Sense Media

App Review: Ragdoll Blaster 2 HD

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With more than 200 levels, Ragdoll Blaster 2 HD never gets old. What players may not realize is that much like Angry Birds,  the longer they play, the more they learn about physics. There’s an undeniable visceral fun in shooting the ragdoll dummies out of a cannon, but the player’s focus quickly shifts to puzzle solving and how to hit the target — and the app never gives you an easy way out. The setup for the app is simple, but mastering it takes a long while, which are the key ingredients in a fun game.

Read more at Common Sense Media

App review: FIFA 11

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FIFA 11 is about as authentic a soccer experience as you’re going to find, short of stepping onto the pitch yourself. It’s a loving tribute to the game of soccer (or “football” as it’s called outside of America) and the enthusiasm can carry through to the player. The game is visually gorgeous, but its controls are average at best and can cause a fair bit of frustration.

Read more at Common Sense Media

App review: Food Fight! – An Interactive Book by Glenn Melenhorst

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Food Fight! – An Interactive Book by Glenn Melenhorst has some charming elements, but ultimately doesn’t stand up to the best interactive book apps — especially with its $1.99 price tag. The story’s message that vegetables can actually be tasty and shouldn’t be avoided simply because they are vegetables is laudable, particularly with the obesity epidemic, but the app’s interactive elements are just so-so, generally made up of brief sound effects and minor animations. Being able to zoom in on the story’s pictures is nice, but serves little purpose other than to better search for hidden stars, which unlock a less than impressive locked page at the end of the book. The app is fun, but it is not great when compared to some of the other excellent storybooks available in the iTunes store.

Read more at Common Sense Media


The Surefire Holiday Hit: Gadgets

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Consumers may be planning to spend less on gifts overall this holiday season, but that frugality seemingly won’t apply when it comes to consumer electronics.

Fueled by demand for Apple’s iPad and Amazon’s Kindle eReader, gadgets are expected to be the top category in retail during the fourth quarter. A survey from the Consumer Electronics Association finds that consumers will spend an average of $232 on gadgets and gizmos this year.

Read more at CNBC.com

App Review: PopOut! The Tale of Peter Rabbit

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Loud Crow Interactive hits one out of the park with their first app. PopOut! The Tale of Peter Rabbit is one of the best children’s book adaptations we’ve seen. The reading interactive elements are stellar — but what makes the app really stand out is its detailed use of sound and movement with the pop-up elements. Every image is filled with several interactive elements that will enthrall children and adults. Flick the leaves falling from trees in the artwork and they’ll come floating out into the book. Touch Peter or his siblings and they’ll giggle with delight. The narration and music, meanwhile, are soothing and bring Beatrix Potter’s classic tale to life. It takes the children’s book app to a new level – and is worth every penny of its higher-than-other-book-apps price tag.

Read more at Common Sense Media

App Review: Reckless Racing HD

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Reckless Racing HD is, simply put, one of the best racing games on the iPad. It doesn’t take itself seriously. It’s easy to pick up and play. And it doesn’t overstay its welcome. Races are short, fast and full of hairpin turns. Even multiplayer is an easy affair, not requiring — or requesting — anything other than a username (and, you don’t even need to provide that). The graphics are wonderful. The game lets you choose your difficulty settings and comes with a hefty number of tracks. The user interface takes a little while to get used to, but once you do, this is a hard app to put down.

Read more at Common Sense Media