Groceries

App & Developer Details
App: Groceries
Developer: Sophiestication Software
Website: sophiestication.com/groceries/
iTunes Link: itunes.apple.com/app/groceries-the-grocery-shopping
Price: $1.99

Review
Shopping lists, love’em or hate’em, we all gotta deal with them… well, I do anyways. The App Store has a few different apps that allow you to manage your shopping lists, but I found one that has a beautiful UI. Groceries, by Sophiestication Software. Groceries sports a clean UI, a nice layout and is simplistic in use.

Groceries

I’ve used other apps like Shopper and GroceryIQ, to name a few, so I’m familiar with shopping list management apps. I was a fan of GroceryIQ but got tired of waiting for them to add pricing to their app (which it now has, but at the time I was waiting months for them to add it). Then I came across Shopper, which I fell in love with… that is until MidCentury Software (the developer of Shopper), got scandalous and started adding ads to a paid app, then got even more scandalous and started charging to remove the ads. Shopper is was an excellent app and if MidCentury wanted more money for the app then they should have just raised the price. Many other users of Shopper share my feelings of being cheated, which you can see for yourself by reading the app reviews within iTunes/App Store.  Since Shopper’s fall from grace, I’ve been searching for an alternative app.

Which brings me to Groceries. Once again, simple to use, just create/name your shopping list or list’s, then start adding items.

Groceries; Lists

Groceries features a nice clean aisles list already for you to choose from or you can setup your own to match the store you’re shopping at. You can create a “favorites” list for item’s you frequently purchase, view your “history” of items you’ve purchased and setup items that aren’t on an aisle (like items that are at the front end of an aisle).

Groceries; Aisles

Then choose from a pre-set list.

Groceries; Add Items

And even add your own items to the items list.

Groceries; Add Item

The shopping list item screen is nice and simple, displaying your items by aisle.

Groceries; Shopping List

With one click from the Groceries list screen, you can email your list (by clicking the button with the envelope on it, on the lower left corner, as shown above).

Groceries; Email

Groceries even offers the “red badge” to remind you how many items you have on your shopping list.

Groceries; Badge Reminder

Going back to what I mentioned earlier about other apps, Groceries is missing a couple powerful features those apps currently have. Specifically Pricing, Sales Tax and Barcode Scanning. According to Sophiestication Software’s website, planned features are…

• Data Detectors to compose lists even faster
• Share lists from Device to Device over Bluetooth
• Cloud syncing
• Track prices to stay in budget

I asked Sophia of Sophiestication Software about adding barcode scanning and sales tax to which she replied “yes these features are planned. However, I can’t/shouldn’t promise when they will be ready for release though “. So, time will tell when those goodies are added.

Overall, Groceries is a clean, simple and well designed grocery list manager, a must for anyone looking for both quality and simplicity, all at an extremely fair price of $1.99. I’ll definitely check back down the line to see it’s progression, hoping it’s feature set expands as pricing, sales tax and barcode scanning are features I’ve come to not only enjoy, but rely on.

Website
Sophiestication Software’s website, much like their/her apps, is also clean and simple. When you first go to sophiestication.com, your automatically forwarded to sophiestication.com/apps. Here your offered three apps available for the iPhone/iPod Touch and a controller for iTunes (for Mac). When you click on the “Groceries” link, the page you’re taken to is quite nice and the layout is very clean. It features a nice pic of the app running on an iPhone, some additional text  to the right of it with a link to a Quicktime/.mov video of the app in use. Below that is a list of Groceries features, a list of features that are being added in the future and finally a couple of brief reviews and a link to the app on the iTunes/App Store.

Overall Rating
User Interface: ★★★★★
Layout & Design: ★★★★★
Customer Support: ★★★★★
Website Design: ★★★★★
Price: ★★★★★

Parking App

App & Developer Details
App: Parking App
Developer: Tap Tapas llc.
Website: www.taptapas.com/parking_app.php
iTunes Link: itunes.com/app/parkingapp
Price: $2.99

Review
Do you use metered parking, forget where you park or need to avoid parking area’s on a certain day, days or week? If you answered yes to any or all of these, then Parking App is your solution. Where I live we don’t have much metered parking, but every time I go down to Los Angeles, metered parking is everywhere. However two problems I do encounter frequently are, the street sweeper and forgetting where I park.  The street sweeper pay’s me a visit every 3rd Wednesday of the month. I’ve received three tickets in the past 5-years from my friendly neighborhood street sweeper. Do you always remember where you park? I don’t, sometimes I forget, even when I’m at the local Wal-Mart Super Center.

Parking App

Parking App is straight forward, all of the controls are on the main form, the UI is clean and simple. If your parking and want to make sure your in sync and aware of how much time’s remaining on the meter, simply set the time on Parking App to match the meters.

Time Remaining

You can set an early warning notification or if you have a Google Calendar account then you can get an early warning notification without having to keep the app open. This feature can save you from a ticket. The developers say’s their working on an update that will replace the Google Calendar feature with push notifications, which will be very nice.

Google Calendar/Warning Norification

Remembering where you park is a snap with Parking App, “Enter Hint”, which can be whatever you want (a note, numbers/letters/section, etc.), then add a picture of where your parked. It has a GPS button that will take you over to the Google Maps app with a pin of where your at if you want to take & save a screen shot to use as your photo. I wished this was an in-app feature instead of having to be taken to the Google Maps app, then go back in to the app. Maybe we’ll see it in a future release?

Edit Hint

Add Photo

Parking App crashed on me a couple times when trying to take a photo, but after rebooting my iPhone it was fine? Not sure if this was a bug or memory problem with the iPhone, but I reported it to the developers.

If you want to avoid parking in a certain area on a certain day, at a certain time or on a certain week, no problemo. Click “Add New Street with Rules”, then give it a name (i.e. “Street Sweeper”), a start and stop time, specify the day, days or weeks and a warning (to remind you in advance) and your good to go. To get the warning I think you need to keep the app open, I don’t think this works as a push notification, though that would be nice if it did? I want to note, I tested this feature 3-times and couldn’t get the warning notification to work? I’m hoping it’s something I’m doing wrong & not a bug, but I also mentioned it to the developers.

Add Zone

Overall Parking App is an excellent, very useful and potentially money saving app, well worth the $2.99 price tag. It’s extremely simple to use, handy and convenient. A much have for anyone using metered parking, needing a reminder of where they parked or needed a reminder of when not to park.

Website
Tap Tapas website is beautiful. The page featuring Parking App is clean and well designed. It features a nice large iPhone on the right with an OGV video running so you can see the app in use. On the left is a list of Parking Apps features and a description of the app in the center, with a promo code request & download link underneath . Across the upper middle are links to their other apps and as you scroll down you’ll see snippets of other reviews. Finally across the upper left is their logo and links to other sections of their site (i.e. blog, contact info, etc.).

Overall Rating
User Interface: ★★★★★
Layout & Design: ★★★★★
Customer Support: n/a
Website Design: ★★★★★
Price: ★★★★★

]]> http://bestapps.wordpress.com/2010/02/22/parking-app/feed/ 1 AreJay Icon; Parking Parking App Parking App; Time Remaining Parking App; Google Calendar Parking App; Edit Hint Parking App; Add Photo Parking App; Add Zone http://bestapps.wordpress.com/2010/02/01/musicid-with-lyrics-2/ http://bestapps.wordpress.com/2010/02/01/musicid-with-lyrics-2/#comments Tue, 02 Feb 2010 02:48:01 +0000 Robert http://bestapps.wordpress.com/?p=352 ]]>

MusicID with Lyrics

App & Developer Details
App: MusicID with Lyrics
Developer: Gravity Mobile
Website: www.musicid2.com
iTunes Link: itunes.com/app/musicidwithlyrics
Price: $2.99¢

Sorry, late review again, got a little busy in my personal life, anyways, here we go.

Review
When Shazam became available for the iPhone, I quickly went to the iTunes App Store to download it. The first thing that surprised me was it’s price, free? Cool, I thought, and quickly downloaded it. Of course, like the many others, I fell in love with it, pretty quickly. One of the first things I did is show it off to my friends, who were amazed. Then whenever I heard a song I didn’t recognize, I pulled out my iPhone & loaded up Shazam, life was good… for awhile.

Then came the infamous update that limited you to 5-tags per month. It was around this time I realized it was smart to keep previous versions of apps or back them up. Unfortunately, I didn’t know this until it was to late regarding Shazam. Ok, so then “Shazam Encore” becomes the replacement, claiming improvements, something along the lines of: “new design, layout and speed improvements, unlimited tagging (wasn’t that already available in  the free version before the crippling update?), tag chart, track recommendations, car mode option, plus many additional features”. Well, those sound great and all but as far as my needs are concerned, I just want to be able to tag any song I want, at any time. Well, the speed improvement sounds nice but I don’t care about the rest. So what’s the new unlimited version going to cost after being free? Is it $0.99¢…, maybe $1.99…, nope, $4.99, OUCH!

Well, instead of dishing out the $5, I decided to look around a bit to see if anything else was available. Good thing I did! Enter, MusicID with Lyrics.

Identify Song

MusicID with Lyrics has some pretty cool features, along with being pretty fast. For starters, let’s get the obvious out of the way. It will identify a song just like Shazam/Shazam Encore. I’ve had it for a few weeks now and so far it’s only made one mistake, but, when I retried it a second time it was correct.

Analyzing Song

When it identifies a song, it give’s you what you’d expect; Song Title, Artist, Album Title, Artwork, “Buy on iTunes” link and “YouTube Videos” link. Additionally, you also get the Artist’s Biography, Song Lyrics (like the app title states), ID Location and Similar Songs. These features I actually enjoy and make sense to me.

Song Info (Identified Song)

Next up “Now Playing”, I love this feature. It will give you information (i.e. Lyrics, Biography) on whatever song your playing on your iPod and it even let’s you add it to your “My Songs” list or “Email to Friend” option.

Now Playing

Then there’s “Popular”, which show’s you what Albums are currently popular and “Search”, another feature I love. Search for any song (doesn’t have to be on your iPhone) and get the same results as “Now Playing”, which is “Buy on iTunes” link, “YouTube Videos” link, Song Lyrics and Artist Biography.

Song Search

What’s really cool is not only can you search by Artist or Song Title, buy also by Lyrics. And finally, “My Songs”;  a list of all the song’s MusicID with Lyrics has identified, songs you added from Now Playing (if saved) and songs you’ve search for (if saved).

My Songs

I want to note, all the identified music above was randomly chosen for this review.

I have to say, I really love being able to get lyrics for songs identified, songs from my iPod and songs I can search for. Ok, now down to the visual and related details. As you can already see from the screen shots I provided, MusicID looks a lot better then Shazam, at least to me it does. Navigating MusicID is straight-forward, the UI is clean and the controls are nicely responsive. So far all lyrics I’ve search for have been available, to my surprise. The identification time is excellent, I’ve clocked my last five identifications between 7-10 seconds and I love the wooden shelf look of the “My Songs” form (kinda reminds me of all the hype with the iPads iBooks UI… or is that Delicious Library ). Anyways,  this wonderful app and all these wonderful features are only $2.99, $2 less then Shazam. I honestly think your getting more for less in this comparison.

Website
The website is also very nice, clean and very attractive. Using mostly those lovely grayscale colors we all love (well, at least I do), when used properly. MusicID isn’t just available for the iPhone, but also for Blackberry, Windows Mobile, Java enabled phones or pay-per-use (which is .99¢ per successful ID), nice if you only need it for rare occasions but will add up if your a frequent user. At the bottom of the web page is a video for the app, which looks really cool, but I wouldn’t know what the heck it was selling if I saw it by itself.

Overall Rating
User Interface: ★★★★★
Layout & Design: ★★★★★
Customer Support: n/a
Website Design: ★★★★★
Price: ★★★★★

Google Voice

Details
Company: Google
Website: m.google.com/voice

Yes, it’s true, Google Voice finally hit the iPhone today via a HTML5 web app. I logged in to my Google Voice account this morning to discover a wonderful surprise waiting for me. A pretty nice looking iPhone optimized Google Voice web app.

That’s right, no more waiting for Apple’s approval, thank goodness! I love Google Voice and have been a user since it was GrandCentral. I was very disappointed when Apple pulled all 3rd party apps, as I was a user of GV Mobile and loved the app. Then as Google Voice changed or updated and the app started having problems (since the developer couldn’t provide updates since Apple pulled it), so I removed it.

Google Voice; Dailer

Direct dial now, no more calling you then connecting to the user!

Google Voice; SMS

All this time, I’ve been forced to use the ugly version of google.com/voice/m, which has been a tedious experience, especially when making outgoing calls. Then a few weeks ago, I got excited when I heard about Riverturn’s Voice Central Black Swan, also a web app. A light at the end of the tunnel, so to speak. Their the developer of Voice Central that was also booted off the App Store back when Apple pitched a fit. So I registered on their site and just figured some time in the near or distant future, I’d hear from them. You can check out their demo video here, it’s pretty nice. I’ll still check them out depending on what they offer upon it’s final release?

So, there you have it, in all it’s glory. I wanted to show the other screen shot’s (Top/My Contacts) I took but I had to blur out so much, it’s not worth posting them. So, grab your iPhone and head over to google.com/voice/m and check it out yourself. Oh, this web app also works for Palm Pre owners, so enjoy.

Checkout Google’s release on their blog at googlevoiceblog.blogspot.com. They’ve got a couple screen shot’s and a video.

]]> http://bestapps.wordpress.com/2010/01/26/google-voice-on-the-iphone/feed/ 0 AreJay Google; Icon Google Voice; Dailer Google Voice; SMS http://bestapps.wordpress.com/2010/01/26/dark-nebula/ http://bestapps.wordpress.com/2010/01/26/dark-nebula/#comments Tue, 26 Jan 2010 09:25:11 +0000 Robert http://bestapps.wordpress.com/?p=224 ]]>

Dark Nebula

App & Developer Details
App: Dark Nebula
Developer: 1337 Game Design
Website: www.1337gamedesign.com
iTunes Link: itunes.com/app/darknebula
Price: .99¢

Sorry for the review being late, I wanted to get this out over the weekend, but I had some family business to tend to, anyways, here it is. I have several more in the works so come back soon.

Review
I came across Dark Nebula visiting one of my favorite app review sites because the developer was giving the app away over a weekend, it looked interesting so I thought I’d check it out and I have to say, I’m glad I did. Note: If you’d like to checkout the very cool game trailer that interested me, check it out here.

I’m not a big fan of labyrinth/roller ball games, but I’ve made an exception for 1337 Game Design’s Dark Nebula, this is one gorgeous game. And I mean as a whole, Dark Nebula has quality written all over it; everything from layout and design, controls and navigation, to user interface and sound.

Dark Nebula

Start Menu

Dark Nebula is a awesome roller ball game consisting of 10-levels. And no, you don’t just go threw a maze and try not to fall in holes. Dark Nebula takes labyrinth/roller ball games to a hole new level.

10 Levels

Your goal is to get through each level as fast as you can without losing lives , shields and obtaining as many orbs as possible. With each level becoming more challenging then the previous. Your rewards will consist of bronze, silver or gold stars depending on your completion time, orbs collected, shields and lives lost.

Level Achievements

With each level completed, you’ll find yourself on a local and global leader board.

Leader Board

You start out getting these orange cells referred to as “orbs”. Collect as many orbs as you can (tip: you’ll want to strive for perfection and not miss one).

Level 1

Avoid falling off the edges (don’t you just love seeing the innards of your iPhone on level 1, shown below).

Inner Working's of iPhone

Don’t go threw a laser barrier without first getting a laser shield to protect you from injury to you/your shield.

Laser Barriers

In advanced level’s, prepare for some careful yet fun jumping.

Jumping

Also in the advanced levels, your going to be shot at and even have to time your movement’s between shots. And remember, through all of this your being scored on how quick you can get threw each level.

Don't Get Shot

Dark Nebula is a well rounded game. One of the downsides to roller ball games I’ve played in the past were poor controls, the ball not moving where I wanted it to, rolling to fast or slow. But that hasn’t been an issue playing Dark Nebula. The controls are smooth and absolutely wonderful. In the latest version, 1.1, the developers even added a calibration control to play at different angles. And if you beat the game in a week like I did, you can try your skills on the “Expert” difficulty setting, giving Dark Nebula good replay value.

Since Dark Nebula’s latter title states  “Episode One”, I’ll definitely be looking forward to Episode Two. So, how much is 1337 Game Design charging for their new masterpiece? A mere .99¢ (what a steal)! So get it now before they realize it’s worth a lot more.

Website
The website is ok. The layout is a bit old school and would benefit if it featured an iPhone or iPod Touch either scrolling threw screen shots or playing a short looped video of the game. Instead it opens to a graphic and a little information about the developers background, a brief summary of the game and three additional links to screen shots, game trailer and contact email address. I admit, with such a beautiful game, I was expecting more of the site.

Update – 1/27/10
If you want more info on the game or the developer, visit facebook.com/darknebulagame

Overall Rating
User Interface: ★★★★★
Layout & Design: ★★★★★
Customer Support: n/a
Website Design: ★★
Price: ★★★★★

Note

I’ve updated both review’s for Tap Forms and Momento (shown below) to reflect website info & ratings, minor spelling corrections and little tweaks, additions/modifications.

Also, come back soon, I’ll have another review in progress, I’ll upload it tonight.

Dev Note

Quick note to developers. If I feature your app here, I will add a modified (for size purposes and optimized for iTunes) version of my review to your app reviews within 1-5 days. If you would like to use a snippet or a full review for your website or on your app description, please do so but please let me know before-hand so I know where my reviews go.

Free Apps

Website: freeappaday.com

That’s right, a free app, everyday. There a a few sites that giveaway apps and promo codes but this site is my favorite. They started out back in December 2009 as 24-days of Christmas at appventcalendar.com. Now there going full time at freeappaday.com, which went live on 1/18/10. So far, the three previous apps that were given away were Rope ‘n’ Fly, Zombie Pizza, Reign of Swords and the current app is Cocoto Kart Free. Stop by there at least once a day to checkout what their giving away. Remember, each giveaway is only good for 24-hours, so you got to be quick.

Momento

App & Developer Details
App: Momento
Developer: d3i
Website: www.momentoapp.com
iTunes Link: itunes.com/app/momento
Price: $2.99

Review
Next up, we have Momento from d3i. A self described “unique diary/journal writing app for iPhone & iPod touch”, which it is and then some.

Splash Screen

I’ve been using Momento for about 3-weeks now, and I have to say, “I love this app”! I was more curious then anything when downloading Momento, because I’m not much of a journal/diary writer, but I am an avid Twitter, Facebook user, which is what initially peaked my interests. So, for starters as mentioned, if your into diary or journal writing, this app is perfect for you. You can write your little heart away with all your personal, private and social moment’s.

Momento is all about “moment’s”, which can be thoughts, ideas, activities or experiences. When you create a new moment, you can add contact’s from your address book, logging who’s involved in this moment. Add a GPS tag (Momento store’s the name of each GPS tag for frequent use, i.e. “home”, “school”, “movie’s”, etc.). One really nice feature is you can add a picture from your camera roll or take a new pic. And finally, you can tag or rate a moment, which definitely help’s when searching through moment’s or help’s remind you of how much fun you were having, what your mood was or whatever you want to use rating for.

New Moment

If you want to store private moment’s, no need to worry about security…

Passcode Screen

… they’ve got that covered with passcode protection. So if you have some private moment’s you want to keep away from others or some dirty little secrets you want to store, you don’t have to worry about nosey friends, family or spouses getting in.

Momento has your social feed’s covered too, Facebook and Twitter as I previously mentioned plus, Flickr and Last.fm. The Twitter/Facebook integration, is my favorite feature, I post on both daily.

Instead of having to go back and forth between social websites (facebook.com, twitter.com, etc.) to review your posts, Momento will display them both and your private moment’s on one nice linear form (sorry about the blurring below ▼ … I have some private moment’s I want to keep private).

Search & Moment's View

You can also view from a calendar form if you want to check on some older post’s weeks, months or even years back. The little orange dot’s (in below ▼ pic) represent private moment’s and the blue represent social post’s.

You can review/scroll threw moment’s by tags, GPS locations/tag’s or by ratings.

Tags Screen

Momento sports a very beautiful UI, which I instantly fell in love with. A very clean, easy to learn layout and a well thought out design, which makes navigating around Momento a breeze. With a Spotlight type search, it’s easy to locate your moment’s and social post’s.

Overall, Momento’s design, features and functionality make this app a must have for anyone wanting to channel their social feed’s into one place or for anyone wanting to use their iPhone or iPod Touch to log your thoughts, ideas, activities or experiences. With all the features Momento pack’s and it’s extremely fair and affordable price of $2.99, it’s an absolute bargain.

Website
The website/page for Momento, is just as beautiful as the app itself. The theme completely matches the app itself. It’s a single page with a iPhone scrolling screen shots of Momento across it (with individual links to the screen shots in the middle, when clicked display in the iPhone) and a nice clean description of the app. Then there’s a support link in the mid-left side that will bring up a help & support form and Twitter/Facebook links in the lower right.

Overall Rating
User Interface: ★★★★★
Layout & Design: ★★★★★
Customer Support: n/a
Website Design: ★★★★★
Price: ★★★★★

Tap Forms

App & Developer Details
App: Tap Forms
Developer: ClickSpace Technologies Inc.
Website: www.tapforms.com
iTunes Link: itunes.com/apps/tapforms
Price: $8.99

Review
Ok, so first up we have, Tap Forms from ClickSpace Technologies Inc., marketing itself as a “Mobile Database”.

Welcome Screen

According to their website “Tap Forms is a mobile personal database application for the Apple iPhone and iPod touch. Use Tap Forms to store and retrieve just about any kind of information that you need access to while you’re on the go. Think of it like having your very own personal database right inside your pocket!”

Account List

I’ve been using Tap Forms for several months now for personal and business use, and to be honest, I’ve found it very useful. Especially since the developer Brendan, has continuously been updating it, adding much needed features. The user interface and layout is excellent, allowing quick access to view, modify, add or delete my data. If there is something I access on a regular basis I can mark it as a favorite to get even quicker access to it. Anytime I call my bank now, I open Tap Forms so I have everything on-hand.

Passcode Screen

What I love about Tap Forms is it has so many uses. Storing anything from bank account/financial/passport information  to garage door codes, safe codes, personal information (social security numbers, drivers license, etc.), serial and registration numbers and just about anything else you can think of. In case your wondering, yes, all your data is totally secure with 256-bit AES Encryption and Passcode Protection to keep prying eyes out.

Edit Screen

Tap Forms is extremely customizable, so you can create a form and database for whatever you heart desires. You can even customize each field for the type of data your going to use in each field (text, numeric/numbers, date, time, phone number, website URL & more).

Tools Screen

Having a problem, got a question, not a problem? The support I’ve received from Tap Forms developer , has been excellent. Every questions I’ve emailed has been answered within 24-hours. Have a suggestion for a new feature? They’ve got that covered too. Taking user feedback to add features to Tap Forms is, what I believe does and will make Tap Forms stand out from other similar apps. Enter feedback.tapforms.com. Here you can submit a feature request or search to see if someone else already has. Once a request has been submitted, you simply vote on what request’s you  like. Once a submission receives so many votes, it get’s the attention of the developer and is added to a future update.

Overall, Tap Forms is an extremely useful and handy app. The price may be considered a little high by some when comparing to similar apps like Bento for the iPhone, however for us Windows users, Tap Forms has one thing going for it that Bento for the iPhone doesn’t currently offer. Syncing. Which on Bento is currently available for Mac users only. Additionally, the customer support is so superb I don’t mind paying a couple bucks more for it. With the developer listening to his users and promptly responding to support questions and adding feature requests, Tap Forms becomes a fair purchase at $8.99.

Website
The website for Tap Forms is nice and to the point. It has plenty of screen shots and a feature list covering everything Tap Forms offers, an introduction in Flash or QuickTime and a QuickTime video of what’s new. And finally, a tab linking to their blog and a tab linking to their support page.

Overall Rating
User Interface: ★★★★
Layout & Design: ★★★★
Navigation: ★★★★★
Customer Support: ★★★★★
Website Design: ★★★★
Price: ★★★★

Promo Codes
Update 1/22/10 @ 6:27pm – I have 5-promo codes available. If you want one, leave a comment suggesting an app you think I should review here or on my Twitter account & I’ll email or Tweet you a promo code.