Vodka veteran Absolut has just released a free iPhone app that suggests drinks depending on a wide variety of criteria, like time of day, mood, type of liquor, occasion, and lots of others. After picking one, it even includes instructions on how to mix one up. As a reference alone, that’s a pretty sweet app, but you can even tweet and update your Facebook status about what you’re drinking. (Hey, some people even blog about their drinks.) GPS integration also lets you see what’s being drunk in your area and around the world. Fine timing on the launch, considering Independence Day is tomorrow… Interested? You can nab Drinkspiration from the iTunes App Store here.
Facebook for iPhone is awesome. Anyone that has used it usually raves about it, as It makes interacting with the site ultra-easy (and fun)… and I have to admit, I pop it open once a day just to see what’s going on. Awesomely, (Is that a word!?) Facebook has announced that the new Facebook for iPhone 3.0 is nearing completion, and we should see it available for download in the near future. Look for enhancements such as a new homescreen, new notes and events pages, plus an updated news feed. Also, and probably much more noteworthy, Facebook for iPhone 3.0 could very well let you create photo albums, upload photos, zoom photos, tag photos, and a lot more. Stay tuned for more on this. It’s coming soon… I can feel it.
Awhile back we had heard rumblings that Rolando 2 was coming to the iPhone very soon… I had actually almost forgotten about it, until last night when we received an email about it. Yes, thankfully, Rolando 2: Quest for the Golden Orchid is now available in the App Store! It’ll set you baak $9.99, but in my opinion, it’s one of the best puzzle/strategy games out there.
No ‘Lite’ version of the game is available just yet, but I would not be surprised if one pops up in the near future. The original Rolando game spawned a free version as well, but it appeared some time after original release. So, if $9.99 is a little too rich for your blood, just hang on… a free version may become available.
The folks behind Pikkoo, the company which presented its offering at the recently ended Mobile 2.0 Europe in Barcelona, sent me an email to inform me about the official launch of their Live Screensaver concept, which allows streaming of information to mobile devices without ever pushing a button.
Their first live screensaver is launched in partnership with Foreca, Finnish digital weather service company, with which they’ve developed Foreca Live Weather Screensaver. The application/screensaver brings up-to-date, geographic-specific weather information of 140,000 locations worldwide to mobile screensavers.
Personally I find this kind of screensaver extremely useful, as I check for weather conditions about once a day. Using Foreca Live Weather Screensaver, I would be reminded on the weather even when I’m not doing anything on my phone.
Finally, in case you’re wondering, Pikkoo’s live screensavers rely on Adobe Flash Lite technology, which works on quite a few phones today…
Nokia (NYSE: NOK)’s Ovi Maps 3.0 just launched, and I’d love to tell you what it’s like, but I’m such a huge fan of Google (NSDQ: GOOG) Maps that I see no compelling reason to switch. For those of you living in nations that have expensive data plans, Nokia Maps is for you since you can preload maps. For those of you who need turn by turn navigation, Nokia Maps is for you. For the rest of you, the majority of you, just go to google.com/gmm on your phone, download, and enjoy.
Why all the negativity? You need to download a file on your computer, to install an application on your phone. How silly is that? Even more silly, the file you need to download to get Maps 3.0 on your device will only work with a PC. Sure Google Maps may not have “3D landmarks for over 200 cities, rotation, tilting, night view, and fly-overs and fly-throughs” or “enriched POI information by Lonely Planet, Michelin and Wcities, as well as a weather service that provides 24 hour and 5-day forecasts”, but the search works remarkably well and when I’m trying to find a bodega at 4 in the morning in a rough neighborhood, I want to see accurate results and fast.
Just received note from our friends at Bplay that ALL products are on sale at Bplay… 30% off that is. All you need to do is enter coupon code ‘JULY‘ on checkout. This sale is on now, through July 6th, so go ahead and check out all of the BlackBerry gaming goodness before it’s too late!
Important Note: This offer is not eligible for Bill to Phone (direct billing) or in-game purchases… and Bplay tells me some products are not eligible for this offer. Bummer I know. Bottom line, add what you want to your cart, enter the coupon code, and hope that the discount applies
Yes, finally a Crokinole game for mobile! Ha ha, not sure if anyone out there is familiar with this great little game, but around these parts my friends refer to me as ‘Old Croke’. I love the game.
New for Android is Carrom3D Pro. The game features not only the classic game of Crokinole, but 3 other ‘Carrom’ games for your enjoyment. The developers at Kinetic Bytes put a lot of effort into getting the physics just right, and they’ve done a pretty good job. In fact, you can even adjust the physics of the whole game via settings built right into the app. Adjust the sliding friction, rolling friction, coefficient of restitution and more. This makes for a totally custom gaming experience… Just tweak the settings until you get it how you like it!
If you’re a fan of Crokinole or Carrom, you’ll want to pick this one up right now. It’s available in the Android Market via a free trial, or you can throw $1.99 down for the full version.
Apparently the folks at News Corp are considering a change for its Wall Street Journal App for iPhone and BlackBerry (NSDQ: RIMM). The change? New features and options? Nope, the change would be making the app a paid one.
WSJ.com has been surveying users regarding willingness to pay for the app, but any results from these surveys is unclear. The WSJ has a policy of ‘never sharing results publicly’, so I suppose we’ll assume the results land on the free side of things, that is, up until the app goes paid, if it ever does. No potential pricing structures are available for the WSJ App, but I would imagine we’ll hear more about this soon.
Interestingly enough, Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) has added some new billing options with the 3.0 Firmware update. Subscription payments are now very much a reality. Also, developers and publishers can charge for additional content found within an app. I’m yet to notice this first-hand from any of the apps I’m currently running… But rest assured the newspaper apps are looking into these options diligently.
This is a tough one for me. I know there will be a segment of die-hard users that enjoy the WSJ app so much that they’ll unquestionably pay for it… But for myself, saying ‘yeah, take it for free, and use it as much as you want!’… And then a year or so later pulling the ‘OK, now you’ve gotta pay for it, $2.99 per month please!’… That just leaves a sour taste in my mouth. Either charge me up-front for it, or offer an initial ‘lite’ version with limited features that tempts me to pay up for a full version if I like what I see. Hopefully if News Corp makes the move to paid, the current version of the WSJ app turns into a ‘lite’ version, with fewer features and options than a new, paid version.
I better stop here or I’ll ramble on forever…
Your thoughts? Would you pay a flat fee and/or a subscription for full use of the WSJ app? Or would that turn you off completely?
Like to take trips to foreign locales, do you? Don’t forget your iPhone! Armed with the right iPhone apps, your iPhone can be an invaluable tool to help you organize your trip and find your way around not-so-familiar terrain. Who better to help you find those iPhone travel apps than the globe-trotters at National Geographic? The renowned travel/exploration publication has posted their Top 20 iPhone Travel Apps for your perusal, and it’s a good’n.
From free iPhone apps like “Room” to paid apps like “Packing,” Nat Geo has all the your travel needs covered. Common travel apps like FlightTrack and Google Earth are staples of any would-be traveler, but less popular apps like Babelingo (300 common phrases in 11 languages), Room (helps you pack for your trip) and Cheap Gas (um, self-explanatory) also deserve a quick mention.
Zumobi keeps pumping new apps to the Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) AppStore. Their latest work is the Msnbc.com iPhone application which, like Zumobi’s earlier apps, is available as a free download to the end users. As you can guess for yourself, the Msnbc.com for iPhone offers access to breaking news, videos, photos, and more from msnbc.com. The content also includes NBC News, MSNBC Cable shows, blogs and even Twitter streams from favorite NBC News and MSNBC Cable anchors.
The application comes with they call the “radial interface,” inspired by NBC logo, that allows for easy navigation by offering a “full view of the colorful menu so they can select what they want to explore.”
Finally, Zumobi seems all proud that the first advertiser is on board, right from the launch. It’s Best Buy which is featuring an “innovative mobile campaign” integrated directly in the app…
Just received note from our friends at Bplay that ALL products are on sale at Bplay… 30% off that is. All you need to do is enter coupon code ‘
Like to take trips to foreign locales, do you? Don’t forget your iPhone! Armed with the right iPhone apps, your iPhone can be an invaluable tool to help you organize your trip and find your way around not-so-familiar terrain. Who better to help you find those iPhone travel apps than the globe-trotters at National Geographic? The renowned travel/exploration publication has posted their Top 20 iPhone Travel Apps for your perusal, and it’s a good’n.