The Top 10 iPhone Applications from February 2009

Hello, and welcome to the second installment of iWant, iNeed, iRecommend. This is a monthly series that will, simply put, talk briefly and present the top ten iPhone and iPod Touch applications from that month. At the end of the year, the 120 mentioned applications will then go head to head to see which apps become the top ten for the year. If you want to read my post about the top ten iPhone apps from 2008, please visit it here. Or, if you would like to read my previous top-10 lists, please visit them here. While this list is subjective (as are all top ten lists), I did my best to base this on actual use, not my own opinion.
Enjoy.




10: Most Wanted
Most Wanted is an interesting application. Unlike most applications, which require user input, this one is simply a database of information for you. As its name implies, it is a list of the FBI’s most wanted criminals and the most wanted terrorists. It also has a list of missing children, along with their respective photographs. You can submit a tip or just browse the lists. This is an important application for the iPhone, as it could help to solve cases that might otherwise be left cold. You can get Most Wanted for free.

9: iHistory
Imagine having history in the palm of your hand! Well, more specifically, on the screen of your iPhone. That is what iHistory is trying to do, and they are currently doing a good job of it. Though there is not nearly as much information as I would like to see, they have plans to add much, much more history to this application. Imagine being able to see the history of your city, while you were walking around it. iHistory can be yours for $1.99.

8: Jules Verne Masterpieces Collection
When I was much younger, I loved to travel the world, and the solar system, through the pages of Jules Verne. He would take me under the ocean, to the moon, and even to the center of the Earth itself. His novels moved me and inspired me greatly. The Masterpieces Collection is a grouping of his greatest novels, in e-book format, and is readable on your iPhone and iPod Touch. These are all great reads, and classic texts. You can get Jules Verne Masterpieces Collection for $1.99 from the apple store.

7: March Madness
It is time for the big dance, so let’s start the gambling. Actually, don’t start betting, as it is illegal to bet on college sports. Let’s just do the brackets for the bragging rights. March Madness is a piece of software for you iPhone or iPod Touch that allows you to access and create a bracket for the upcoming tournament. Featuring auto complete, enhanced zooming, and automatic score keeping, this application is perfect for your office poll. You can get March Madness for free.

6: Pocket Bracket
March Madness is almost here, and it is time to start making your brackets. I found that there were two great applications for the dance in the APP store, and found that they were both roughly equal. Like March Madness, Pocket Bracket allows you to auto-complete, auto-update, and generally form a good bracket. The advantage that Pocket Bracket has is the fact that it can support multiple brackets as though it was a poll, and keeps stuff online as well. You can get Pocket Bracket for $.99.

5: Nano
I will be reviewing Nano in the near future. Please check back on my writer’s page to see the review.

Nano is a very interesting application. I am not sure if it is a game or a meditation device, but I liked it either way. Basically, you direct streams of ions to receivers, trying to get only the good ones (cool colors) in, while keeping the bad ones (hot colors) out. In the background, a random music plays; it is created by how you play and what is streaming into the receivers at any given moment. To me, this was a really relaxing game, and I think that you will all enjoy it. You can get Nano for $.99 in the app store.

4: 3 and 4 card PRO
I have reviewed both 3 Card PRO and 4 Card PRO, check them both out.

Poker, that is what Avalinx has been doing in their PRO series, and that is what they will keep on doing. And why should they change? After all, they keep putting out amazing games that are perfect. This is my third top-10 list, and on everyone so far one of the PRO games has been included. These games are well designed, well implemented, and quite stunning. Basically, if you want to see what a perfect template for a game is, look no further than the PRO series from Avalinx. Both games will set you back $4.99.

3: All of the GO/Find/Locator Applications
You are in a strange city and have no idea where anything is. What if you need a doctor? What about the nearest police station? Hell, what if you need your 7/11 fix right this minute. No matter what you are looking for, Active Guru has an application that can find you the closest one by using your iPhone GPS. From your nearest pub to the nearest Burger Kind, the nearest hospital to the nearest vet, there is an application that will find you exactly where you need to go. The GO/Find/Locator applications will set you back either $.99 or $1.99, depending on which one you get.

2: Travel Help!
Following the lost theme from number three, what should you do if you are lost in another country? Do you know the proper emergency number (911 in the US, 999 in the UK) to call? What if you lost your passport, do you know how to contact the embassy? Rest assured, if you have your iPhone and the Travel Help! Application you are covered. Storing important phone numbers, websites, and other information you can easily access over 260 countries worth of emergency contacts. Likewise, you can also store additional information (coast guard data, auto services, etc.) that you add on. This application is essential for any world traveler. Travel Help! Will cost you $1.99 but is easily worth it.

And the #1 application of February 2009 is…
1: Smack Me
I will be reviewing Smack Me in the near future, please check back on my writer’s page to see the review.

I can not say enough about Smack Me. This is one of the best games I have ever played on my iPhone and is quickly becoming my favorite application of the year (sorry PRO series). The game is just like bob-it, but on the phone. Utilizing multi-touch, the accelerator, and just simple touch (one finger) the game uses anything you can do to your phone. Pinch it, smack it, freeze it, lift it; the game has everything possible. This is easily one of the most addictive games out there, on any platform, and one that you will love immensely. When I first got it, I didn’t put it down for an hour or two. The $1.99 that you will be spending on Smack Me is well worth it, and I recommend that you get it today.
Read more ...

Ten Amazingly Accurate Tech Predictions for 2009

I intentionally picked some things out of left field. It would be really pointless for me to predict that both wireless USB and USB3.0 come out, that Snow Leopard is released, etc. Basically, I took some things that might happen, might not, and justified them. Sure, I will not be a 100%, but what fun would it be if I was?



1) Apple will start to lose desktop/laptop market share.
While Apple has never really had a large share of the market, they have been making slow but steady gains the last few years. The biggest increase for Apple is in the college demographic. However, with the stumbling economy, the masses will buy fewer and fewer computers from Apple as they start to do a simple cost/benefit analysis. This will lead to a full reworking of Apple's marketing strategy and long-term plans, thus leading to the new market for Apple.


2) Apple releases a tablet/netbook/large iPod-Touch.
This new market, and new strategy, for Apple will be the release of a netbook/tablet that is essentially a large-screen iPod Touch. While this will get huge sales initially (helping to bump up the netbook market), it will quickly steady out and remain at the roughly 20% market share that Apple currently enjoys. The iNetBook will feature a touch screen, with a stylus as well, and OSX Snow Leopard. Unlike most netbooks, Apple's will be priced in the $500-$600 range, but that should not keep Apple from getting their normal support (I will be buying it the day it comes out).


3) The Netbook market takes off, but Windows XP remains the primary OS.
With the economy going towards the gutter and consumers spending far less than in years past, low-tech gear will gain in leaps and bounds. Most people want computers to e-mail, browse the Internet, and maybe look at pictures, and netbooks fill this niche perfectly. In 2009, netbooks will take about 20%-30% of the laptop market share and will remain in the sub 400$ range. Regardless of any Linux options or any future Apple OS, Windows XP will remain the king of netbook systems.


4) Microsoft will start a phone company, the iPhone will keep growing, Android will stumble.
The Apple iPhone, with its sexy look and easy-to-use touch screen will continue to grow in market share, while its app store makes millions for Apple. The iPhone, which will be available in larger sizes and memory configurations, will soon become the market leader of smart phones. Android, which launched with some fanfare, will soon plummet and disappear as most companies realize that it is better to have a company who can advertise their OS as opposed to you having to do it. Microsoft, in an attempt to keep Windows Mobile alive, will either create a Zune phone or make a play to purchase RIM (BlackBerry) which will give them a strong standing.


5) Google will release a full-fledged OS, un-beta Gmail, and stop supporting Chrome.
Google, preemptively judging their Android OS as being a market-stealer, will release a full-fledged OS for PCs (and maybe Macs). This operating system will mostly rely on cloud computing and will be lightweight, open source, and full of widgets. It will start strongly, but then will fall to Linux-like market share. As part of the release, Google will also release a final and full version of Gmail (only a few years too late) with only a few new features. Gmail will quickly become the dominant online e-mail client. Chrome, which slumped after a large release (like all of Google's products) will be terminated. Instead, Google will acquire Firefox (and Thunderbird) and attempt to gain browsing territory.


6) Microsoft will release Windows 7.
Following the release of Google's OS and Apple's OSX Snow Leopard, Microsoft will launch Windows 7 in the middle of its projected launch window; that is, it will be released in early November. This is just in time for Christmas, and it will be included on all PCs sold as Christmas presents. Unlike Vista, Windows 7 will be greeted with rave reviews and will have a large user base from the start. This will be seen as revitalizing and turning Windows around. I also predict that I will be standing in line and will buy it the second it comes out.


7) The Resurrection of HD-DVD.
As already stated, with the economy in the gutter, consumers are doing their best to spend as little as possible. A dead, but good, format should be able to help them do that. While there will be no new HD-DVD's (for now) released, the pricing of the actual existing movies (a large library of them) and the players are so low that consumers who do not care about the new releases will be starting to buy up these discs. Once there is a large sale record of HD-DVD, Toshiba will start to make the players again. Starting with smaller companies, and then moving to some mainstream studios, HD-DVD will make a comeback.


8) All three consoles will sell less, PS3 will be pulled.
With consumers spending less, all electronics will take a hit, and the console market is no exception. The Wii, with its low price and lower-end technology, will still be leading the market in the console wars. The Xbox 360, not to be outdone, will lower its price and keep on truckin, but will only gain slightly on the Wii. Sony, with their PS3, will not be able to cut their costs any more, as they are already selling each system in debt. Sony will cut their losses, and pull out of the console war for this generation (though their PSP will remain).


9) Microsoft will announce the Xbox 720, and a Microsoft handheld gaming system. Sony will release the PS4.
Sony, in an attempt to find a way to make money quickly and surely, will work on releasing the PS4. After discontinuing the PS3 they will roll out a console that is essentially a small computer, with dual Nvidia 9800 GPUs, Blu-Ray, and all the whistles; Sony will attempt to create another high-end system. While this works at first, and it starts the next generation of consoles, the market will not be there for such a costly item. Sony will pull out of the console market shortly after. Microsoft, on the other hand, will announce the Xbox 720, which will be a hybrid between the PS3 and the Wii, featuring the best of both while also keeping the few nicer features of the current Xbox 360. They will have a Halo title ready for launch. Additionally, Microsoft will announce a handheld system to compete with the DS and the PSP (it might be part of the Zune phone). Nintendo will continue with the Wii, possibly announcing an HD version (with a USB dongle). They will not announce a new console until 2010 or later.


10) Rock band and Guitar Hero will join, or at least release compatible controllers.
While this might just be a wish of mine, but I really am hoping that this happens in the near future. With the slowing down of sales eating into their margins (due to the price of each game), both Rock band and Guitar Hero will team up to release new games. The two companies will merge and become one. They will then release multiple variations of each title. If this does not happen, then I believe that the two companies will release a standard for their instruments, so that they all work on the same games. This makes sure that their games are sold, even if their instruments are not.

Read more ...