Q&F: Vampires Bloodlust
T.J. Brumfield | Jul 15, 2009 Games, Quick & Free
User rating: 
(3 votes, average: 3.33 out of 5)
(3 votes, average: 3.33 out of 5)
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Zynga’s Vampires Bloodlust follows a familiar formula already established by Mafia Wars and the like. You perform missions to earn experience and currency, which in this case is blood. And proving that the only thing deadlier than predators is a society of predators, you can turn against your fellow undead and attack other players. Gameplay isn’t anything new or particularly exciting. That being said, I felt this game deserved some discussion.
Tags: Games, Q&F, T. J. Brumfield, zynga
GPS Kit
T.J. Brumfield | Jul 15, 2009 Navigation
User rating: (7 votes, average: 3.86 out of 5)
(7 votes, average: 3.86 out of 5) Loading ...
The iPhone is far from perfect. But perhaps its greatest appeal is its ability to replace several separate cumbersome and expensive gadgets with one simple device. With Garafa’s GPS Kit, even the most ardent GPS enthusiasts may be able to set aside their dedicated GPS units and reach for their iPhone instead. I took version 3.2 out for a spin, which works well with OS 3.0 on my 3G S.
For those who don’t own dedicated GPS units, you may be wondering if you need anything more than the basic functionality that the iPhone provides out of the box, especially for an app priced at $9.99. The iPhone by default comes with an application which pulls up Google maps. It can find your current location, show you maps around the globe, and provide directions by car, bus or foot. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: $9.99, gps, Navigation, T. J. Brumfield
myBatteryLife
Michael (Admin) | Jul 14, 2009 Utilities
User rating: (7 votes, average: 4.00 out of 5)
(7 votes, average: 4.00 out of 5) Loading ...
myBatteryLife tells you how much battery is left on your iPhone! Yes, my fellow smartasses, we all know the iPhone can pull off that crazy little trick as well. What this app attempts to do differently is it gives estimates for how much time remains in a few different usage categories… all of which appear to be based on figures estimated by Apple.
Having forgotten all about Apple’s battery estimates, at first I believed that myBatteryLife was actually calculating something! It’s no secret that I’m not too bright so cut me some slack here. Not long after that I realized that it’s probably just a series of images that display pre-determined battery life numbers rounded to the nearest 5%. I don’t know that for sure, but it just seems logical since the exact same numbers are given every time my iPhone is down to 20%. In fact, the numbers don’t change whether you put the iPhone in Airplane mode or blast your screen brightness high enough to fry your eyeballs; you’ll always get the same numbers when your battery is down to x% no matter what you’re doing.
I would pay a lot more than $.99 if this app could give a true estimate based on actual usage factors. $5 for such an app doesn’t sound completely outrageous. Until KVapps can make it do that, though, approach this app like it’s a collection of battery data images that aren’t really as useful as they look… because that’s probably what it really is.
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- I've never tried, but I kind of doubt I'd be able to squeeze 4 1/2 hours of internet out of 3/4 of a battery
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- Well at least we know the app is pretty good at agreeing with the iPhone's battery meter
Tags: $.99
LOMO Camera
Michael (Admin) | Jul 14, 2009 Photo & Video
User rating: (8 votes, average: 4.63 out of 5)
(8 votes, average: 4.63 out of 5) Loading ...
I regularly keep 100+ apps loaded on my iPhone and one of my favorites is ToyCamera which I almost use more often than my iPhone’s regular camera… granted, I have an iPhone 3G (not S) so I’m not giving up any fancy new features like autofocus, but even if I had a 3GS I’d probably still use it all the time! That’s how frakkin cool it is… it makes lame photos a little less lame, and cool photos that much cooler.
LOMO Camera is a lot like ToyCamera in that it imitates the visual effect of an old-timey piece of crap shutterbox, specifically the Lomo LC-A. The Lomo isn’t actually all that old or crappy – it was first introduced in 1984 and sports some cool features – but this Russian-made camera has made a pretty big name for itself among photography nuts and avant-garde weirdos, and now Westarting Studio has their own iPhone-ified version available in the App Store.
iYamato
Swain Valasek | Jul 11, 2009 Games
User rating: (4 votes, average: 3.75 out of 5)
(4 votes, average: 3.75 out of 5) Loading ...
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Sometimes a buck on the app store can surprise you and iYamato from Geppetto Inc is solid proof. This gem of a game couldn’t be simpler to play yet has that elusive ‘one more try’ quality coursing through its veins. The premise is that you’re in charge of defending battleship Yamato, the infamous ‘unsinkable’ WW2 warship which was the largest and heaviest ever constructed. The gameplay consists of a landscape screen orientation with the nameship at the bottom and various ‘enemy’ planes swooping in from all directions in an attempt to send you to the bottom of the cold, deep sea. I say ‘enemy’ only because even though the developer was very careful to not label anything as Japanese or American, we all know what flag Yamato flew and who was trying to sink her! That’s all I’ll say about that as this game is definitely not about stirring up old prejudices; to me it’s really just a fun game about shooting down planes with big-ass guns. Furthering that notion, the developer has plans to add DLC in the form of new battleships, weapons, enemies and items which should add lots of variety.
Tags: $0.99, arcade, casual, Swain Valasek
Eric’s 6 Random Freebies
Michael (Admin) | Jul 10, 2009 Random Freebies
User rating: (No Ratings Yet)
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...The theme in this week’s untested free junk is FUN! Wait, using your iPhone to find your car in a concert parking lot is fun, right? Sure, why not! Lalalalalala
California Gold Rush Free by Digital Chocolate: 4,200 people can’t be wrong! With an average rating of 4 stars this lite game release looks pretty worthwhile
Last.fm by Last.fm: Screw Pandora!
Lightsaber Unleashed by TheMacBox: Your Star Wars Geek License will be revoked if you openly lust over Princess Leia but don’t have this app installed. Heck, even I’ve tried it already and I thought Episodes I, II, and III all sucked ass
FingerPiano Lite by Junpei Wada: Now even talentless jackasses like me can play the piano with this teaching keyboard
Fast & Furious The Game Test Drive by I-play: If you don’t at least try the free version of Fast & Furious, Paul Walker will personally come to your house and slap you across the face with his little girly-hands
Take Me To My Car by Eldar Sadikov: If you drive to a huge outdoor concert this summer without this app on your phone, you’re just asking to get hopelessly lost
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- California Gold Rush Free
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- Last.fm
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- Lightsaber Unleashed
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- FingerPiano Lite
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- Fast & Furious The Game Test Drive
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- Take Me To My Car
PixPop Dogs
Michael (Admin) | Jul 10, 2009 Games
User rating: (2 votes, average: 3.00 out of 5)
(2 votes, average: 3.00 out of 5) Loading ...
You already know if you like “photo hunt” games if you’ve ever played ESPN Cameraman, which for some reason is now called ESPN Zoom Cameraman (gosh that sounds so much cooler!). Traditional photo hunts have you examining two seemingly identical photos for really subtle differences and can be so frustrating that you just want to reach out and choke the crap out of someone, but at the same time they can be pretty fun when you’re looking in all the right places.
PixPop… which comes in several varieties, Dogs being one of them… is kind of like a photo hunt but without so much built-in rage. It’s a kinder, gentler photo hunt that shows only ONE photo and your mission is to tap the parts of the pic that match the partial photo tiles on the side of the screen. You can’t tell just by looking, but the photos are already pre-divided in a grid-like fashion so if you tap on the right piece it will match the corresponding tile exactly.
Tags: $.99, spot the difference
JumiCam
Michael (Admin) | Jul 9, 2009 Utilities
User rating: (8 votes, average: 3.75 out of 5)
(8 votes, average: 3.75 out of 5) Loading ...
Using your iPhone to spy on people sounds really cool in theory! You have a webcam set up somewhere and with just a couple of taps you’ve got that webcam feeding into your iPhone. It’s just so… Jack Bauer. At least it would be if it worked anywhere and everywhere the way technology does on that TV show “24″.
JumiCam’s purpose is to put a live webcam feed on your iPhone and it does exactly that, but in a pretty limited way. I tried this app with my own webcam at home as well as two webcams on my friends’ computers and the results were ok but not earth-shattering. JumiCam works great when it’s connected to the same network as the webcam it’s spying through, but trying to spy on someone else’s network… ehhh… let’s just say Jack Bauer wouldn’t last 10 seconds in that scenario.
Tags: $1.99, streaming video
The Idiot Test 3
Michael (Admin) | Jul 9, 2009 Entertainment
User rating: (2 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)
(2 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5) Loading ...
Finally, a test I can pass! Well yeah, after about 20 tries. You might recall an app called “The Moron Test” that was perched atop the App Store’s Paid Apps list not too long ago, and THIS app has nothing to do with that one. Apparently there was some copyright infringing going on because the original “Idiot Test” was a flash game created by Ryan Curtis a few years ago and the Moron Test people were kind of stealing his concept… anyway, The Idiot Test 3 by Nexx Studio is legit and was created with Ryan’s involvement, just in case you’re wondering what went on there. Yay for being legit! Yayyyyy.
So wtf’s the big deal with testing whether or not you’re an idiot? Well, when you consider how many idiots there are in the world (myself included) it’s a pretty ingenius idea. The questions start off dead-simple and lull you into a state of smug confidence, and before you know it you’re hearing a very Nelson Muntz-like HA-HA as you get a question wrong and fail the test.
Google Reader Spam Links
Michael (Admin) | Jul 9, 2009 Website Stuff
User rating: (No Ratings Yet)
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...If you’re reading this site’s RSS via Google Reader you’re probably seeing some very spammy links which are NOT our doing!! Eric, the random freebie guy and occasional contributor, just clued me in on this bizarre happening and I guess it’s not unique to iPhone App Reviews; it happens with other sites, too.
If anyone has tips on how to kill these links I’m all ears! Thanks in advance for imparting your collective wisdom on this really annoying subject.
Cheap drugs online? Well why didn't you say so, sign me up!
Crime Spree
Michael (Admin) | Jul 7, 2009 Games
User rating: (4 votes, average: 3.75 out of 5)
(4 votes, average: 3.75 out of 5) Loading ...
I like crime, and I like going on sprees of various sorts, so it’s only natural that Crime Spree caught my attention, plus I was interested in seeing what Skyworks could do with a non-sports title since my only exposure to their work had been through Arcade Bowling, 3 Point Hoops, and Field Goal Frenzy.
Crime Spree isn’t quite as glamorous as the name sounds, but it’s still a pretty good time killer that has the potential to get you hooked in the same way Pac Man had people hooked 25 years ago. In fact I’m sure there’s a much better comparison to be made here than Pac Man, but right now that’s all I got… Crime Spree is kind of like Pac Man. There are major differences of course, one being that you’re controlling a car instead of a ball that eats smaller balls, but this game definitely has the feel of some old skool arcade action.
Separate Checks Promo Codes!
Michael (Admin) | Jul 7, 2009 Utilities
User rating: (4 votes, average: 4.00 out of 5)
(4 votes, average: 4.00 out of 5) Loading ...
Aaron Berk of TightApps loves the iPhone App Reviews crowd soooooo much that he sent over a batch of promo codes to share!
In case you missed it, Separate Checks recently underwent a major overhaul and is now slicker and much easier to use. Don’t mistake this app for a tip calculator… its main function is to figure out what each person needs to cough up when it comes time to settle the bill at a restaurant or bar. Handy stuff!
