GadgetNewsBlog

A number of apps are trying to get in on the social networking experience made popular by the likes of Facebook and Twitter. Sooshi – Social Sushi tries to supplement your other online identities by creating a real-time network with users you can interact with in real-time through your iPhone.

Much like Buddy, Sooshi gives you some ways to meet people online, though just like your average Craig’s List relationship quality pickings are slim and unlikely to lead to any long-term friendships.

One good feature found in Sooshi that many other social media apps lack is the ability to sign up for a profile directly inside the app — many force you on to the web to create an account.

Once you do this you can connect your existing social networking profiles and other links such as your web site or blog to your Sooshi account. This makes your profile a bit more complete and transparent to those who may check you out in the Sooshi community. Read the rest of this entry »

There are so many apps now that do so little. Fluid 2 is one of those Zen apps whose motto could be “don’t just do something, sit there.”

Fluid 2, a ninety-nine cent version of the free Fluid from Fabien Sanglard, allows you to do more than tap the screen and watch the waves ripple across the water. With Fluid 2, you can also toss a coin to make a wish, upload your own background from your photo album, listen to ambient music and change the color of the water.

Still, Fluid 2 is a do-nothing app. With so many apps-without-purpose competing for recognition, Fluid 2 does not stand out. Koi Pond, one of the original apps in this category, is more engaging. Read the rest of this entry »

My Brute for the iPhone and iPod touch is derived from the online game of the same name, which has more followers than the lead lemming in the annual migration of the little critters over cliffs and into the seas below.

My Brute for the iPhone and iPod touch “is a crazy, off-the-wall game of combat that gives you the chance to challenge fighters from all over the world,” according to Bulkypix, developers of My Brute.

Yep, it’s one of those “create your own character or Brute, give it a personality and go around chopping, hacking, kicking and ideally, turning your enemies into dust and ashes..

Evidently the MyBrute site attracts more than 1.7 million visitors a day, who have created more than 70 million “brutes” or warriors. Read the rest of this entry »

In 2002, shortly after the first iPod was released, Jobs started thinking about developing a phone. Consumers would prefer just one device instead of mobile phone, player and Palm. To protect his new product line, Jobs knew he would eventually need to venture into the wireless world.

In 2003, consumers had flocked to the Palm Treo 600, which merged a phone, PDA, and BlackBerry into one slick package. That proved there was demand for a so-called convergence device, but it also raised the bar for Apple’s engineers.
Read the rest of this entry »

There\’s something delightfully simple about the bubble shooter genre – no convoluted plot to learn, no complicated controls, no statistics to keep in mind, you can even get away with slow reflexes. There\’s just the simplicity of firing up bubbles to make combinations of three or more of the same colour. And they pop! Clear a level and you get some more. And more. And so on, to while away a short or lengthy hiatus in your life.
Bubblyz won’t make any jaws drop but it’s a solidly implemented game. By default, you angle your ‘bubble gun’ using an on-screen touch control, but you can set it to use the accelerometer instead if you really want to. There’s even a ‘Reverse tilt’ option for those of you who think that the playing field should be tilting rather than the bubble gun, and you can fiddle with the ‘Tilt sensitivity’ if needed. I stuck solidly with the on-screen control though, and had no problems. Left handers should note that you’ve been thought of too, with an option to switch the Fire button to the left hand side of the screen.In addition to matching up bubble colour combinations, there are special bubbles, e.g. bomb bubbles that burst a handful of whichever colour they come into contact with, or row creation bubbles that turn every bubble on the contact row the same colour, making them easier to get rid of. Together with the advancing ceiling, which gets lower by one ‘notch’ every time the right-hand-side timer bar fills up, these extra elements spice up gameplay nicely and stop things getting boring.Maybe I’m a little colour blind, but there is one big annoyance in Bubblyz – the creators have used several bubble colour pairs that are just too close to each other – the dark blue/purple ones in particular are VERY hard to distinguish in the heat of the action and I constantly sent the wrong bubble up to join the wrong pair. This can be easily fixed in an update, hopefully. Or maybe I just need new glasses?This glitch notwithstanding, Bubblyz is a lovely little game and great for long journeys, either for you or your kids. There’s a cute stereo music soundtrack, but this can thankfully be turned off, to avoid driving your travelling companions mad!
This article was published by iphoneapplicationlist.com

For a game with such simple instructions, Letrix is surprisingly difficult. Letrix is a word puzzle where you build words similar to Boggle or Scrabble using letters that drop down the screen like in Tetris. Once you’ve created a word, the tiles disappear. If your stack of letters gets too tall, then it’s game over.

Sounds easy, right? I’ve played a game or two of Scrabble in my day so I felt ready to take on the Letrix challenge.

You can move tiles left or right as they slide down the screen. Once a tile lands in a stack, you can still move it up, down or side to side as long as it stays within it’s row. However, with a steady stream on falling tiles, I found it difficult to concentrate on creating words.

There are just a few options for Letrix. Sound effects, basically the staccato clip of tiles falling into place, can be on or off. Disappointingly, you can’t listen to your own tunes while playing. There’s also a high score leaderboard, but I was never asked to enter my name. It seems to track scores only by date and level, not by name so you can’t compare your score to another player.

If you enjoy word games, then Letrix has the potential to be fun. (Heck for folks with a quicker response time it might already be fun!) But I would appreciate an update that makes it easier for new users to get started. I’d like a “cheat” — maybe shake to clear all the tiles or an unlimited play option that dissolves stacks instead of ending the game. I say this because I genuinely like playing Letrix, but getting up to speed is frustrating.

If you’re not sure if you’re ready for the Letrix challenge, you can start off with the free version. If you’re ready to man up, then get Letrix Classic and you’ll get two play modes.

• price: $1.99
• rating: 6/10
• app_name: Letrix Classic

The makers of the Wise Guide Fan Navigator series and the companion site WiseGuidesOnline.com, are expanding the fandemonium by bringing more fan trivia and “locals only” tidbits to MLB stadiums nationwide. … starting with Wrigley Field.

Wise Guide Wrigley Field is a take-along app for any one visiting the Cubs home stadium in Chicago, which isn’t to say that home-viewers won’t enjoy it as well. The guide includes three sections — tips, trivia, eat & drink — and is great for pre-game entertainment or keeping antsy kids occupied if the games goes into extra innings.

The tips section is a general guide to Wrigley Field where users will find information about Harry Carey (and his statue), the source of the curse of the cubs (and what they’ve tried doing to end the curse), bathroom tips, where to wait for autographs and more. There are more than 40 tidbits in all.

The WG Wrigley Field trivia section is actually more of a quiz game with multiple choice answers. You can keep guessing until you get the answer right, which is a nice touch as are the cheering fans. However, there’s no way to turn down the fans without turning down your device, so don’t plan on sneaking in a quick Wrigley Field trivia quiz during Monday morning’s boring meeting.

The last section of the Wrigley Field iPhone app is Eat & Drink and it goes beyond The Friendly Confines. This section includes cafes, diners and bars in and around Wrigley Field. So you’re covered regardless of whether you want to eat before the game, after the game or throughout the game.

The nice thing about Wise Guide Wrigley Field, besides the graphics and general ease-of-use, is that it’s not just a quick repackage of old material. The app is truly a companion to the wise guides website. And, if you like the guide and visit Wrigley Field use the tab on the app to “share a tip” so that future visitors can benefit from your experience and wisdom.

• app_name: Wise Guide Wrigley Field
• rating: 9/10
• price: $0.99

Enhance your photos with ColorSplash by choosing which parts are colored and which are gray. Watch on to see just what you can do with ColorSplash!

This article was published by iphoneapplicationlist.com

Popular developer, Clickgamer, just released their latest collaboration with Studio Radiolaris, Zombies vs Sheep. This game, set in a Mexican shooting gallery (complete with a Mariachi soundtrack), has a simple goal: protect the sheep from zombies and other predators. The game is simple (tap-to-shoot the enemies), the graphics are unique (a cardboard cutout style), and the underlying theme is just plain funny (because obviously we need to worry about protecting our sheep from the living dead).  There are many features that make this game worthwhile, entertaining, and sure to be another App Store hit.

When people think about the action of waving, it is pretty universally accepted as a greeting. However, waving can beckon someone over, can be out of pure politeness, can be a mean of dismissal, or can imply a host of other things. How are we to know exactly what someone intends by this simply gesture? Hey U, a brand new app released today for the iPhone and iPod Touch, attempts to bring some clarity (and fun!) to the act of waving. (more…)