Daily iPhone News

Speedchess on the iPhone is a quicker way to Checkmate glory

Yoyo — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 11:53:25 +0000

When I think of the game of chess, I envision hours on end of Zen-like concentration and patience in making the right moves. But it is quite a different picture with Speedchess from Process Holding. Here, speed is the name of the game that I would associate with ‘slow’ previously. The rules remain the same though, and there is no shortcut to success but through some quick response of the grey matter.

Perhaps one of the reasons why this version of the game on the iPhone can be played quicker is that there are only 30 squares instead of the standard 64, but that does not take away the fun in any way. In fact, the need to make a move fast and outwit the opponent adds a thrill to the game play. As the game board is smaller, the pieces are also less with five pawns each, and a king, queen, bishop, knight and rook.

As much of how the game play goes depends on whom we are pit against, Speedchess gives us two choices of playing either against a human or computer. The computer mode gives us further difficulty level choices of Student, Amateur or Professional. When we choose the two-player mode, we can use Bluetooth or go online, or choose to play a Hotseat game if we dare. The Bluetooth and online mode come with a 60 second time limit, while it varies for other modes.

Speedchess has a colorful and well-designed interface that adds to the vibrancy of the game. If you are looking for a quick and fun chess game on the go, then this game is right up your alley. Plus it is on a 50% off sale for a limited period, so I would say, grab it!

App Name: Speedchess
Price: $0.99
App Category: Games
Note: There is a rating embedded within this post, please visit this post to rate it.
Developer:Process Holding

Tags: App Store, apple, iPhone, iPhone applications, iPhone developers, Process Holding, Speedchess

How to Hire an iPhone Application Developer?

Yoyo — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 10:23:54 +0000

We have been planning this for a while but due to the incessant flow of wonderful apps and games in the apps store we have been completely caught up with getting our hands on to them and reviewing the ones that we thought would interest you, but finally it is here. Today we have added our guide on things to check before hiring an iPhone developer ( iPhone application developer on the top menu ) and am sure this is going to answer many of the mails we received about recommending any reliable iPhone development company.

While we have put in our recommendations, we have also mentioned the key points that you need to check before hiring any developer / Development Company for your iPhone app. Hope this is of help to all of you who are planning your own app.

Tags: Application developers, how to, iPhone developers

Doodle Kart Lite zooms into the iPhone with much funfare

Yoyo — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 13:39:26 +0000

Now, this is quite a unique little one; we have seen so many driving games come and go, but I haven’t seen a doodle driving game yet. Doodle Kart Lite has all the fun of a standard driving game, with some doodle fun and extra surprises thrown in.

We can choose to race alone and let ourselves be the competition. Or if we are in the mood to battle it out, we can race against the computer or take part in a championship. There are Easy, Normal and Hard levels in the championship and CPU races.

The tracks are an interesting part of the game play. One of them even looks like the intestinal system, which I think is a good thing. The crazier, the more fun it is. And to make things spicier, there are options to attack other cars with pencils and bullets and more. This is beginning to sound more like a war zone than a race track, doesn’t it? The graphics are nothing less sort of amazing in this game.

The controls are simple and don’t take too much time to get used to them. There are two control options – touch and tilt. Doodle Kart Lite is also Openfeint enabled, which takes a game to a whole new level of challenges and in-game interaction with other players. It is also a great way to keep an eye on global scores to check our standing.

The only thing that sucks about Doodle Kart Lite is that it doesn’t have as many features as the paid version. But it definitely a good prelude to the full version which promises 5 environments, 25 tracks, nightmare difficulty setting, etc. It’s even got what is called a hidden dark mode, which sounds very tempting to me. I am going to get the paid version for sure; Doodle Kart is the way to race this season.

App Name: Doodle Kart Lite
Price: Free App
App Category: Games
Note: There is a rating embedded within this post, please visit this post to rate it.
Developer:j2sighte

Tags: App Store, apple, Doodle Kart Lite, iPhone, iPhone applications, iPhone developers, j2sighte

IM+ Lite makes connecting to IM networks easier on the iPhone

Yoyo — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 14:28:51 +0000

AOL, MSN, Twitter, Facebook, Yahoo Messenger, Google Talk, Jabber, ICQ, MySpace. I’m sure that most of us use a few if not all of these IM networks. And even for those of us who do, here comes along an application to help us keep connected to all of them, and more. It is quite an irony, but it can prove to be a headache trying to connect to services that connect us to people. And that is hen IM+ Lite steps into the picture to relieve us.

I like the simplicity with which we can start using it. There is no need to create a specific account or register to use it. We just have to choose the networks we want to access and then log in with our personal accounts.

IM+ Lite also enables us to send voice, photo and video messages. Another cool thing about it is how we can personalize our accounts with wallpapers. The animated emoticons also add a nice twist to IM. If we have more than one account in a single network, we can log into all of them. IM+ Lite goes beyond the English language to let us chat in other languages too.

There is a built-in browser to enable us to open links within the application itself. We can also get push notifications for Hotmail, Yahoo and Gmail. If we are bored of the usual status messages, we can set geo-location in its stead.

I guess the developers came up with a Lite and free version so that we can have a glimpse of its great services, and also to tempt us into getting the full version which should hopefully come up soon. The ads in this version can be a little annoying, so that might be a good idea. IM+ Lite is a useful app to have if we want to stay connected all the time.

App Name: IM+ Lite
Price: Free
App Category: Social Networking
Note: There is a rating embedded within this post, please visit this post to rate it.
Developer:SHAPE Services

Tags: App Store, apple, IM+ Lite, iPhone, iPhone applications, iPhone developers, SHAPE Services

Alpine Crawler World is a killer game on the iPhone

Yoyo — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 14:32:06 +0000

Alpine Crawler World has survived the ultimate gaming test in my book – the waiting test. I started playing this game while waiting for a doctor’s appointment the other day, and got so engrossed in it that the usual boring wait passed by in a jiffy.

The features in Alpine Crawler World will make any gamer proud of having it on his device. There are four racing cars to choose from and drive on three different and exciting terrains. The terrains have 10 levels each, so that’s plenty of action on the road less travelled. Both male and female drivers are among the five given. The location choices go a step further with weather and day/night situations. Driving in the snow is quite a novelty, as is driving at night; something about the conditions being more difficulty ups the excitement level.

The application also offers three game modes – Free Ride, Time Trial and Challenge. All the three modes are quite self-explanatory. I suggest that it is good to go on the Free Ride first to get a feel of the game. And then we can proceed for more adrenaline rush on the Time Trial and Challenge modes.

As for the controls, there are Brake and Gas icons at the bottom left and right corners of the screen respectively. These two pretty much decide how the game play goes. It will do us good to keep an eye on the GPS to see where are headed.

The application works on real time physics, and it is a real joy being able to bump and grind through the terrains and feel all of it. And that is what makes Alpine Crawler World a big winner – the graphics. The game play is fantastic, and the cars and locations couldn’t get more fun or adventurous. The application is available in Hungarian, English and German to make it universal. The OpenFeint integration also adds an extra edge of challenge to it.

Alpine Crawler World is one of those few games that I can find no fault with. It is fun, addictive and well-polished with top-notch graphics. A must-have game for every iPhone gamer out there.

App Name: Alpine Crawler World
Price: $0.99
App Category: Games
Note: There is a rating embedded within this post, please visit this post to rate it.
Developer:3D Magic Kft.

Tags: 3D Magic Kft., Alpine Crawler World, App Store, apple, iPhone, iPhone applications, iPhone developers

100 Horror Stories, Sounds And Scares is the scariest book app on the iPhone

Yoyo — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 13:44:20 +0000

The best thing I like about this application is that it is the real stuff, not the cheesy or gory kind. We are talking about horror stories here, and I am so tired of the modern day zombies and vampires and simply mutated creatures. The saying that old is gold is so true; the classic horror stories dished out in 100 Horror Stories, Sounds and Scares sends chills down the spine like no pansy little story can.

The application does not only have stories but also sounds to add to the experience. We can listen to them anytime or while reading the stories. We can also change the settings to Auto-Scare for more thrills. What’s more scarier than being scared when we least expect it, right?

Since presentation is also very important, 288 Vroom LLC have included an eerie-looking interface. The stories are listed in alphabetical order according to the authors’ names. We can read them in scroll mode either page-wise or in a continuous mode. We are even given the option to adjust the text size, which I think is a very good idea because we have personal preferences when it comes to that.

Going back to the authors, there is a very good selection of them here, and most of them scream ‘classic’. From Dickens to Doyle and Sheridan to Wilde, it is one great scary experience.

100 Horror Stories, Sounds And Scares is a very well put together book application. I think that two of the most difficult things to do are to scare and make people laugh, and this application does the former successfully. It’s an application that we can take to bed with us, put the lights off and read it under the blanket, and no having to hold a torch. I must say that it is one of my favorite book applications. I love the pranks that took me by surprise too, but you will have to check it out to see what they were. Let me not be a spoil-sport and ruin the surprise for you.

App Name: 100 Horror Stories, Sounds And Scares
Price: $0.99
App Category: Books
Note: There is a rating embedded within this post, please visit this post to rate it.
Developer: 288 Vroom LLC

Tags: 100 Horror Stories, 288 Vroom LLC, App Store, apple, iPhone, iPhone applications, iPhone developers, Sounds And Scares

To the rescue of the vampire fairy in Bella Boo on the iPhone

Yoyo — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 14:19:12 +0000

One look at Bella Boo and you know that she is in anguish. Or the fact that she is a vampire fairy might as well account for that dead-pan and yet haunted expression. But seriously, if anyone is having their land invaded by wicked monsters, it would lead to one tormented appearance, right?

We, the gamers, surely cannot simply stand by and watch the helpless little fairy even though she is a vampire> be bullied by those evil creatures. What we can help Bella do is to trace a loop around the enemies with the trail that she leaves behind her. We can do this in three different ways – I love how the iPhone gives us multiple game controls. There is a virtual joystick located in the left bottom corner of the screen. Then we have the touch control with which we can draw a direction for Bella to follow on the screen. The tilt control uses the accelerometer motion of the iPhone and Bella moves according to how we tilt the device; this one is rather tricky.

The monsters come with their own score tags, and the more we can vanquish, the more points we rake up. There are also achievements to pursue, courtesy OpenFeint. But it is not an easy walk in the woods as we try to defeat the enemy; they fight back by grabbing us, shooting lasers and flames, or woe us, taking away one of the precious 20 health points we have. They also become scarier and multiply as we progress into the game.

But if there is evil, there is good too, and vice versa, so we get some relief in the form of boost ups. These can be either in the form of elongated trails, extra health points and slowing down the enemies or increasing Bella’s speed.

The music adds to the whole haunted experience, and though the controls need some time to get getting used to, the graphics match the game play well. I think Bella Boo is well worth the price at $0.99. I would give it a thumbs up for the sheer joy of battling with ghoulish monsters. And no prizes for guessing why our vampire fairy is called Bella Boo!

App Name: Bella Boo
Price: $0.99
App Category: Games
Note: There is a rating embedded within this post, please visit this post to rate it.
Developer: Half Fast Games

Tags: App Store, apple, Bella Boo, Half Fast Games, iPhone, iPhone applications, iPhone developers

Rev up some fun with CarMaze on the iPhone

Yoyo — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 14:03:06 +0000

If you are a good driver who knows how to take the best short cutes, you could be an ace at this game. But then there is just not one but three cars to control in CarMaze, so it could prove to be a little tricky. In this puzzle game from Hitesh Patel, we have to direct the cars to their respective exits which are similarly colored.

We have several items to do this as we chart out a route for each of them. There are colored arrows that can change the course of the car with the same color, and black arrows that can change the path of any car. We can change the direction of the arrows by tapping on it. Each arrow sets us back by 10 points. To use the items, we can drag them from the item bar and place them anywhere on the playing field.

The aim in CarMaze is not just to get the cars to their respective exits but to do it in the shortest way possible, and as using as few items as we can. We also have to prevent the cars from crashing into each other. We can use the speed bump to slow down a car and avoid a crash. However, the black arrows and speed bumps are more expensive than the other arrows and cost 15 points. If we don’t need to use an item, we can drag it back to the item menu.

The biggest challenge is to beat other players at finding the fastest route. We can download scores to see what the benchmark is. I’m afraid that I did not like the download option much. Maybe the developers could find a way to show scoreboards within the game itself?

I found CarMaze to be quite an interesting and challenging game. It’s a good option that we can download and see the solutions worked out by other players too. I only wish that we didn’t have to download the scores. But overall, it is a game that’s going to keep us hooked all of its 50 levels.

App Name: CarMaze
Price: $0.99
App Category: Games
Note: There is a rating embedded within this post, please visit this post to rate it.
Developer: Hitesh Patel

Tags: App Store, apple, CarMania, Hitesh Patel, iPhone, iPHone devlopers, iPhone lications

Tales2Go is an excellent audio storybook for kids on the iPhone

Yoyo — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 14:30:48 +0000

I know that this is supposed to be an application for kids, but even though I am not one, I totally loved it. Tales2Go also comes under the Education section, but it is pure entertainment too. If listening to stories is not entertaining, then what is? And it is not just any story, but any story of our choice that we want to listen to from among the hundreds of stories included in this application.

The range and number of stories is mind-boggling, to say in the least. We can choose which one we want to listen to according to several categories. The Highest Rated and Most Popular categories are always a good place to start with, for the stories there are listed for an obvious reason. Age is also always a good indicator about which story would be apt, so whether we are looking for a story for a young child aged 3, or a pre-teen, we can be assured that it suits their interest level.

We can go a step further and choose from among Story Type, everything from Animal Tales and Fables to Mysteries and Story Songs. We can also be specific about whose story we want to listen to with the Storytellers option. The Books and Classics open up to more choices, and as we all have our favorite Characters and Series, those are also included.

Since Tales2Go is an audio application and we are talking about story-telling here, it is so nice being able to choose according to who is telling it, like we can do from the Narrators feature. The Grade Level rounds up the list of categories of stories.

We can mark the stories that we personally like and add it to our Favorite list. We can also Bookmark any story for easy access. In case we are looking for a specific story to listen to, we can use the Search button to look for it.

Tales2Go comes with a 30 day free trial period, after which we have to shell out about $2.00 per month. I think that the application is worth much more than that; the sheer number of stories is amazing. What I personally loved about it was that we don’t have to download the stories, and only stream it. Like the application says, it is ‘Storytime, anytime’.

App Name: Tales2Go
Price: Free App
App Category: Education
Note: There is a rating embedded within this post, please visit this post to rate it.
Developer: Stitcher, Inc

Tags: App Store, apple, Inc, iPhone, iPhone applications, iPhone developers, Tales2Go. Stitcher

Building up some fun with Truck Modz Build and Drive on the iPhone

Yoyo — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 14:19:35 +0000

Why do the kids have all the cool applications? The previous review I did was of Tales2Go, and I really liked that. And then I check out Truck Modz, and I think it is high time to persuade developers to maybe start treating adults like kids and give us fun applications like these too.

Truck Modz Build and Drive comes from LotusLand Studios Inc. There is a truck that is driving down the highway with some funky music and even a radio option. But the truck does not have to retain the same look; it is totally up to us to spice it up and get it looking fun and exactly as we want it to.

There is a screwdriver-shaped logo on the top left of the screen to help us achieve this. Touching it pulls down the garage where we can pimp our truck all we want. The controls work on a three-style operative – touch, swipe and shake. The good part is experimenting and finding out for ourselves what and how to do things. This is a great way for kids to make choices and be able to put together something according to what they think will work well.

Truck Modz has 3D graphics with the ability to view the truck from four different angles. The accessories are fun , but I think this application works best because it is such a DIY thing. There are no tutorials to show us how to go about it; definitely a very hands-on game.

The developers are also open to suggestions for user’s choice of accessories, and that should be fun. I cannot think of what can be cooler than a giant burger right now, but I bet inspiration will strike me as I cruise down the highway. Truck Modz is fun creative, and I’m sure that kids will love the interactive experience.

App Name: Truck Modz Build and Drive
Price: $1.99
App Category: Games
Note: There is a rating embedded within this post, please visit this post to rate it.
Developer: LotusLand Studios Inc.

Tags: App Store, apple, iPhone, iPhone applications, iPhone developers, LotusLand Studios Inc., Truck Modz Build and Drive

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