| |
 There was a vast profusion of cool stuff happening across the 148Apps network this week, but the top of the top was the culmination of our 2011 Best App Ever awards. Head honcho Jeff Scott writes, “It was an amazing year. With over 1.5 million votes cast (over three times the number cast last year) and a record number of nominations, we now have the winners of the 2011 Best App Ever Awards. Thanks to all that voted, nominated, and made these fantastic apps!”
Read the full list of winners, and our own Carter Dotson’s take on them, on 148Apps.com.
Kid-friendly GiggleApps featured a review of Fun Clock-Learn to Tell Time. Reviewer Amy Solomon writes, “Few apps actually tackle explaining the true concept of telling time they way this app does. After watching the included video in Fun Clock – Learn to Tell Time, children will be will well on their way to understanding how to read a analogue clock. As a parent, I don’t think I could have explained this better myself, also wishing that this video had been around when I was a child.”
Take the time to read the full review on GiggleApps.
$1.99  + Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
Released: 2011-09-22 :: Category: Education Finally, over at Android Rundown, Carter Dotson took a closer look at Apple’s recent iBooks education initiative and evaluated it for what it could mean for the Android platform. Dotson writes, “It may not have been the sexiest announcement, but Android supporters – manufacturers and users alike – should not underestimate Apple’s education gambit. Their big push into education with iBooks 2 being optimized for textbooks (both the reading and selling thereof) and iTunes U offering deeper integration with college courses could be the necessary roots they have to lay down for long-term success at the expense of Android.”
Read the full commentary on Android Rundown.
FREE! + Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
Released: 2010-04-01 :: Category: Books And that’s the week that was. Don’t forget to read a full list of Best App Ever winners at www.bestappever.com, and keep following us on Twitter and Facebook for all the contests, news and reviews you can eat. I’ll be playing Jetpack Joyride non-stop until next week, but I’ll see you back here then.
 The award-winning KooZac game, which has racked up 15 million plays online and picked up a Channel 4 “Best International Interactive Viral” award, is coming to iOS and Android according to a recent statement from Square Enix. A cross between Tetris and Sudoku, KooZac is a puzzle game that has players position falling blocks on top of each other to hit the target number and complete the set amount of combinations to finish each level.
The mobile version will include new ways to play, including Puzzle, which brings the player through 60 levels of destroying silver blocks and cleaning the board by completing the targets, Endless for no level and no stage parameters and the ability to compete against the world as well as Blitz for completing targets and using boosts to achieve even higher scores within one minute. The game’s creator Ben Cusack was hired by Square Enix to head up its expanding mobile division.
 Crates, boxes, and velocispiders, oh my!
On This Episode:
Carter discusses the recent release of Super Crate Box with the game’s developers, Vlambeer.
Carter and Gavin Bowman discuss the release of DoubleTake on Android, along with the recent new iCade peripheral announcements.
Who We Are:
Host: Carter Dotson
Guests: Rami Ismail & Jan Willem Nijman, Vlambeer
Guest: Gavin Bowman, Retro Dreamer
Music:
“Beatnes7 (Theme to The Portable Podcast)” by The Eternal – Download on iTunes here: 
“Nanocarp” by The Eternal
How to Listen:
Click Here to Subscribe in iTunes:
Click Here to Subscribe via RSS.
Listen Here:
Podcast: Play in new window
| Download
Apps Mentioned on This Episode:
$1.99 + Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
Released: 2012-01-04 :: Category: Games $1.99 $2.99
+ Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
Released: 2011-06-01 :: Category: Games $2.99 + Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
Released: 2010-02-10 :: Category: Games
 Happy New Year to all of our readers! We had a great end to 2011 across all of the 148Apps sites. At our flagship 148Apps.com site, writers Rob LeFebvre and Carter Dotson posted a series of articles counting down the “Favorite 50″ apps and games of 2011. The lists cover every genre and type imaginable, but if you want to cut to the quick, take a look at the top five apps or the top five games. Whether you agree or disagree with our decisions, we feel sure you’ll discover a few new apps along the way.
Over at GiggleApps, writer Amy Solomon continued her mission to review the best new apps for children by reviewing Kids Food Adventure. Solomon writes, “Kids Food Adventure is a very nice universal app that is geared towards encouraging children to try new foods.
The foods included in the application can be searched by season, as one can look at a calendar where each month of the year has seven foods that are in season, and I like how one can pre-select an area of the world – be it North America or Europe – to make the food selections offered, which are accurate in terms of seasonal availability.”
Read the full review on GiggleApps.
FREE! $0.99
+ Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
Released: 2011-09-21 :: Category: Education  Finally, on AndroidRundown, Carter Dotson commented on why Android phones currently have OnLive, while iOS users are still out in the cold. Dotson says, “So, here we are, two weeks later, and OnLive is still only on Android. It was announced to be released for iOS along with the Android version, but no real reason has been given as to the delay of the iOS version, beyond that Apple is still examining it for approval.
Without firsthand knowledge of the process, I can only assume that Apple is not likely to approve it because it will not fit their policies. See, OnLive’s client is all cloud-based; even the interface and menus to choose games are streamed from their servers. This also means that buying new games comes from operations occuring on their servers.”
Read Carter Dotson’s full commentary on AndroidRundown.
So here’s to a fantastic 2012 for everyone. We’ll stay with you throughout the year, covering all of the latest iOS news, reviews, sales and more. If you want to stay on top of all the happening, plus get plugged into giveaways, follow us on our Twitter and our Facebook streams. Happy New Year!
This week at 148Apps.com we delved into the latest from the developers of Hipstamatic, the “disposable” Hipstamatic D-Series app. 148Apps founder Jeff Scott says, “I got a chance to try out the new app and can report that Hipstamatic D-Series does indeed bring back the nostalgic memories of sharing a disposable camera and swapping double prints into the digital age. It’s a great idea and well executed. There’s even the anxious need to burn the last shot by taking a picture of your foot, just to get the roll developed quicker. It’s indeed very fun.
Delve further by reading the full run-down on 148Apps.com.
FREE! iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2011-12-15 :: Category: Photography $1.99 iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2009-12-10 :: Category: Photography At GiggleApps.com, reviewer Amy Solomon took a close look at the first interactive book from The Cat in the Hat’s Learning Library, There’s No Place Like Space. Solomon says, “There’s No Place Like Space, although a creative, fun and educational book, is not written by Seuss himself, although it is written in a Seuss-like style. I enjoy this book, as does my son, but my husband and I did comment to ourselves that the text is not as well-written as the classic books by Seuss.”
Read the full review at GiggleApps.
$5.99 + Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
Released: 2011-11-16 :: Category: Education  Finally, 148Apps.biz site editor Rob LeFebvre reported on a new report from mobile analytics company Flurry. LeFebvre writes, “Flurry shows the fact that developers are making more money on iOS than on Android, even as the numbers of Android OS enabled smartphones continues to increase, commanding as much as 53% of the market, according to an NPD Group study released yesterday as well.”
Intrigued? Read more on 148Apps.biz.
As your advent calendar continues to count towards December 25th, don’t forget to vote for our 2011 Best App Ever, and keep track of the latest news, reviews and contests via our Facebook and Twitter streams.
This week at 148Apps, once we were all finished with our Halloween and post-Halloween merriment, writer Lisa Caplan explored the vast landscape of camera replacement apps for the iPhone. Caplan writes, “Apple has done a lot to improve the native camera app with iOS 5 and lucky iPhone 4S owners are already taking the highest quality iPhone images ever. But, even with the tune up, many of the most requested features from manual adjustments to photo bursts, darkroom effects to more sharing options (Facebook anyone?) are still lacking. But, the app store is filled with alternatives so this week we look at our favorite four camera replacement apps.”
Unlock your iPhone’s photo potential by reading the full article on 148Apps.com.
$0.99 iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2010-06-06 :: Category: Photography Over at our kid’s apps headquarters, GiggleApps, Amy Solomon took a closer look at an innovative 3D comic book called The Gwaii. Solomon states, “This app does have some 3D effects as well that are best seen as one moves the device, looking at the additional angles that this provides. The 3D here is effective but somewhat overly sensitive to touch and there have been moments that I wish I would have turned this element off, trying to keep my hand steady to minimize the screen movements. I think this effect may be a distraction for some children, while others may really enjoy this effect.”
Read more about this new interactive storybook on GiggleApps.com.
$1.99 + Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
Released: 2011-07-18 :: Category: Books Finally, AndroidRundown featured an article by Carter Dotson that attempted to address the iOS versus Android ongoing argument head-on. Dotson says, “The thing to remember, though, is that Android and iOS are different in their very natures. iOS is a piece of Apple software, following Apple principles; it is designed to run on specific hardware. That is a big part of why the experience is often smoother. Android is designed to run on many, many forms of hardware, not just what Google has intended for it to run on. Yes, Google has their stock devices that run a pure Android, but Android is meant to be something bigger, and not as something tailored to one set of hardware. That Android is on the caliber of Android is impressive.”
Add your voice to the argument after reading the full article on AndroidRundown.com.
That is the week that was. What started with Halloween ended with the first onslaught of holiday commercials on television, so keep your eye on 148Apps.com and our Facebook and Twitter streams for the latest reviews and helpful hints to get you through the holiday season. See you next week, readers!
This week at 148Apps.com, we took a first look at Garmin’s new StreetPilot onDemand app. Rob LeFebvre writes, “The app itself offers 30 days of premium features for that dollar, including multimodal pedestrian routing, bus/train schedules, spoken turn-by-turn guidance with street names, 3D representations of buildings, traffic rerouting, photoReal Junction View and Google Local Search. Once the free month is up, users can pay $2.99 monthly or $29.99 annually, with a special introductory $19.99 annual price for this first year.”
Read more about StreetPilot onDemand on 148Apps.com.
$0.99 iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2011-08-31 :: Category: Navigation Meanwhile, at GiggleApps, we got the music playing with our review of Sylvester’s Band. Reviewer Amy Solomon states, “The illustrations are simply gorgeous to look at and I really appreciate how each location Henry visits has a unique landscape all its own, while maintaining the style used throughout this book, such as squared-off trees or cloud formations. I enjoy a great deal how the look of this story changes, becoming dark as the gang makes their way high into the clouds looking for William the Wolf. The details about lassoing the moon in order to bring it to the party create wonderful images that stayed with me after reading this book, my favorite moment of this story. It is also great fun the way each time Henry collects another band member they can all be seen, one by one, running to a new location. These creatures look great as well…”
Read the rest of Amy’s review on GiggleApps.com.
$2.99 + Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
Released: 2011-07-27 :: Category: Books 148Apps.biz featured an article about tablet owners and TV viewing habits. Kyle Flanigan writes, “According to the report, some 50% of tablet owners – iPad included – watch films and TV shows on their portable device for leisure. In the words of research director Keith Nissen, “tablets, in particular, have become a primary video device, both inside and outside the home.” There are few adjectives that come to mind to describe such a high percentage: unexpected, unanticipated and unprecedented began to scratch the surface.”
Find out more by reading the full story at 148Apps.biz.
And finally, AndroidRundown writer Carter Dotson announced G5 Entertainment’s first simultaneously-launched iOS and Android app, Stand o’ Food 3. “While G5 Entertainment only recently got on to the Android train, they aren’t wasting their time making sure their library of sim games are well-represented on the platform. In the past few weeks, both Supermarket Mania 2 and Virtual City have been released for Android, after their initial mobile releases on iOS.”
Read all about it on AndroidRundown.
That’s it for this week, but don’t forget to check out our ever-changing lists of apps, and make sure you keep up to date on all the latest news and happenings by following us on Twitter and liking us on Facebook. See you next week, true believer.
This week at 148Apps, writer Gianna LaPin continued the 500,000 Apps Interview Series by chatting with Colin Lynch of Freeverse. Lynch says, “There are plenty of skill-sets that are helpful in creating great apps and great games. An eye for design, an ability to analyze the market and spot opportunities, speed of thought and action to take advantage of those opportunities, great coding skills, flexibility to work around problems or change directions when events warrant.”
Read the full interview on 148Apps.com.
Over at our kid-centric sister site GiggleApps, reviewer Amy Solomon took a thorough look at Practice Book, a new iPad app that uses a familiar connect-the-dot approach to helping children learn letters and words. Solomon writes, “Because my son is new to creating letters, this is an app we work on together. I may demonstrate the correct way to connect the dots in terms of the up or down motions commonly used to make letters or give him simple instructions that he can follow by himself. Sometimes I hold his hand and together we trace over template in the hope that his muscle memory for writing these letters will develop. We often use a stylus as well to get used to holding a pencil to write.”
Read the full review at GiggleApps.
$0.99 iPad Only App - Designed for the iPad
Released: 2011-07-28 :: Category: Education And at Android Rundown, Carter Dotson comments on the new that iOS superhit Instagram is coming to the Android platform…sort of…maybe…one day. He writes, “Instagram’s CEO Kevin Systrom has announced that an Android version of their photo sharing service is “on the horizon” for Android. The app is very close to being real, as they don’t even have a team assembled to develop the app for Android. That is also sarcastic.”
Read more of Dotson’s commentary on Android Rundown.
FREE! iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2010-10-06 :: Category: Photography Finally, here in the states, it’s the Labor Day weekend. That means scads of sales on tons of apps. Keep up to date with the latest and greatest changes by visiting our Huge Labor Day Weekend Price Drop Round-Up. There are great deals to be had, and some amazing games to play in between bites of char-broiled goodness.
That’s it for this week. Want to know the latest and greatest news about everything happening in the iOS world, including giveaways and contests? Join us on our Twitter and Facebook streams. You’ll be glad you did. See you next week!
Money, it’s a gas; grab that cash with both hands and make a stash!
On This Episode:
Carter speaks to Alex Benoit of EA Mobile about the recent release of Scrabble for Android, discussing its cross-platform multiplayer play, as well as major publishers who distribute games as free to play releases on Android.
Carter and Owens Rodriguez talk about Alien Space Retro, what went into this release of the game, as well as discussing the culture of in-app purchases on iOS.
Who We Are:
Host: Carter Dotson
Guest: Alex Benoit, EA Mobile
Guest: Owens Rodriguez, independent developer
Music:
“Beatnes7 (Theme to The Portable Podcast)” by The Eternal – Download on iTunes here:
“Nanocarp” by The Eternal
How to Listen:
Click Here to Subscribe in iTunes:
Click Here to Subscribe via RSS.
Listen on WRGT Radio every Friday at 4pm Central
Listen Here:
Podcast: Play in new window
| Download
Apps Mentioned in this Episode:
$1.99 iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2008-07-11 :: Category: Games $4.99 $5.99
iPad Only App - Designed for the iPad
Released: 2010-04-01 :: Category: Games $0.99 + Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
Released: 2011-07-15 :: Category: Games
You must have control!
On This Episode:
Carter speaks to Todd Hamilton of Joypad about their app that turns iPhones and iPod touches into game controllers for PC, Mac, and iPad games, and talks about what could come in the future for games that support Joypad.
Carter speaks to Semyon Voinov of ZeptoLab about the game’s new Android release, and the content that’s been added to the game since its original release.
Who We Are:
Host: Carter Dotson
Guest: Todd Hamilton, Joypad
Guest: Semyon Voinov, ZeptoLab
Contact The Show: Email | Twitter
Music:
“Beatnes7 (Theme to The Portable Podcast)” by The Eternal – Download on iTunes here:
“Nanocarp” by The Eternal
How to Listen:
Click Here to Subscribe in iTunes:
Click Here to Subscribe via RSS.
Listen on WRGT Radio every Friday at 4pm Central
Listen Here:
Podcast: Play in new window
| Download
Apps Mentioned in this Episode:
$0.99 iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2010-10-04 :: Category: Games $3.99 iPad Only App - Designed for the iPad
Released: 2010-10-07 :: Category: Games FREE! iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2010-03-29 :: Category: Utilities FREE! iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2011-01-12 :: Category: Utilities
 Other than major console mascots like Master Chief and Mario, there are few animated characters that hold quite as much weight and blindly ravenous fan support as Sonic the Hedgehog. Though we are long past the days of Sega Genesis and Dreamcast, the blue tinted blur still maintains the love and affection of the masses in the industry, so it is big news when they announce that not only is Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing coming to the iOS, but they are partnering with OpenFeint to make it all possible.
But why would Sega shun the world of GameCenter, when it is the most readily available among the iOS consumer base, you ask? The answer is simple: Cross Platform Connectivity.
“Cross platform mobile social gaming is a major goal of SEGA and we believe Sonic will continue to entertain and inspire consumers while on the go. OpenFeint offers a great platform to launch games on, whether it be through access to their enormous player community or the use of great cross-promotional features like developer announcements.” — Haruki Satomi, Vice President of Digital Business at SEGA.
What this means is that not only will the multiplayer of Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing be a parallel of its console counterparts, but it will also allow you to play against audiences on competing platforms, like possibly Android. While we have no official confirmation of that, the comment above would certainly lead one to believe it to be true.
From a developer’s perspective however, this would be a godsend, because not only would cross-platform play increase the player base immensely, but it will also allow changes to be made at the server level for portions of the multiplayer, without forcing the users to download an update to the actual client game. This will be a big step forward that could lead to a greatly improved user experience.
Stay tuned, because we will have more hands-on impressions of the game while we troll the show floor at E3, next week.
 Living in an Apple centric world, it is hard to imagine that anyone would want to use anything for video chat other than the standard Facetime app. However, sometimes we forget that there is a large world outside of the cushy comforts that the iOS provides. Our good friends over at Android Rundown can attest to this firsthand. Now I am not saying that they are any better off than we are in iOS land, but it would stand to reason that from time to time you may actually want to video chat with someone on an device that uses the Android platform.
This is why the creation of the the Tango Video Calls application is so incredible, because not only do you get to chat for free, but you can also exchange pleasantries with your buddies on Android as well! Due to the constantly evolving ecosystem of the parallel platforms, the software is constantly being upgraded. This most recent release includes the following:
 We now support multi-tasking. Check your email, browse the web, or send a text message while in a Tango call!- Improved look and feel on several Tango call screens and icons
- Both audio and video is established more reliably when a call starts
- Your Tango Contacts are sorted based on preferences you set in your device’s address book
It is good to know that not only is this app frequently getting updated for functionality, but there are also new and welcome features being added all the time. Even better yet is the fact that there is a free alternative available to Facetime. This is not to say that Apple’s software suite isn’t stellar as it is, but personally, I am all for having options.
We have heard through the grapevine that Tango only takes thirty seconds to configure and then you are online, free and clear. So what is your excuse for waiting?
FREE! + Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
Released: 2010-09-29 :: Category: Social Networking
You go back, Jack, and do it again…
On This Episode:
Carter speaks with Orian Livnat of Liv Games about Legendary Wars’ inception, concept, and what has gone into the recent updates of the game.
Carter speaks with Ron Alpert of Headcase Games about 180, and why the game is going to Android.
Who We Are:
Host: Carter Dotson
Guest: Orian Livnat, Liv Games
Guest: Ron Alpert, Headcase Games
Music:
“Beatnes7 (Theme to The Portable Podcast)” by The Eternal – Download on iTunes here:
“Nanocarp” by The Eternal
How to Listen:
Click Here to Subscribe in iTunes:
Click Here to Subscribe via RSS.
Listen on WRGT Radio every Friday at 4pm Central
Listen Here:
Podcast: Play in new window
| Download
Apps Mentioned in this Episode:
$1.99 iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2010-04-28 :: Category: Games $0.99 iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2011-01-27 :: Category: Games FREE! iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2011-03-29 :: Category: Games
Watch us as we descend into the dark side.
On This Episode:
We discuss Android, especially gaming. We discuss the elements of each OS, how they differ, and why one is not necessarily better than the other. We also discuss some of our favorite games for Android, including iOS ports.
Who We Are:
Host: Carter Dotson
Guest: Vincent Messina, Android Rundown
Contact The Show: Email | Twitter
Music:
“Beatnes7 (Theme to The Portable Podcast)” by The Eternal – Download on iTunes here:
“Nanocarp” by The Eternal
How to Listen:
Click Here to Subscribe in iTunes:
Click Here to Subscribe via RSS.
Listen on WRGT Radio every Friday at 4pm Central
Listen Here:
Podcast: Play in new window
| Download
Apps Mentioned in this Episode:
$1.99 + Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
Released: 2009-11-13 :: Category: Games
Scoring in a pinch! Easiest intro line ever.
On This Episode:
Carter speaks to Tom Beardsmore of Coatsink Games about Pinch 2 HD, and how the game has changed in going from being a primarily iPhone/iPod touch game to being for the iPad.
Carter speaks to Raphael Weiner of Scoreloop about social gaming across multiple platforms and on Android, including ones that have official services like iOS’ Game Center and Windows Phone 7′s Xbox Live support.
Who We Are:
Host: Carter Dotson
Guest: Tom Beardsmore, Coatsink Software
Guest: Raphael Weiner, Scoreloop
Contact The Show: Email | Twitter
Music:
“Beatnes7 (Theme to The Portable Podcast)” by The Eternal – Download on iTunes here:
“Nanocarp” by The Eternal
How to Listen:
Click Here to Subscribe in iTunes:
Click Here to Subscribe via RSS.
Listen on WRGT Radio every Friday at 4pm Central
Listen Here:
Podcast: Play in new window
| Download
Apps Mentioned in this Episode:
$0.99 iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2010-05-14 :: Category: Games FREE! iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2009-07-18 :: Category: Games
 Early last week it was reported that a number of applications had been discovered in the Android Marketplace that contained malware. As things developed, we learned that the apps were sending certain ids and preferences to another server, but not really doing anything damaging. The applications were exploiting a known vulnerability in the Android OS to get this data. It has been revealed since then that these applications have the capability to download new code and then do additional things.
Google has removed the applications from their marketplace and users phones using their remote kill capability. This should have removed the known offending apps from the vast majority of users phones. They will also patch the OS and somehow fix the malware installed on over 200,000 users’ phones.
One of the problems with the Android model is that Google can’t release a fix to all users of the OS at once. They have to release it to the manufacturers who then in turn need to implement it, test it, then deploy it to the devices. In contrast, Apple maintains full control of their OS; if there is an issue, Apple can release an iOS update to all devices.
But you may wonder, “Can these same malicious applications make it to the Apple App Store?” Of course they can, but the chances are greatly reduced by Apple’s approval process. Furthermore, capabilities of any malicious applications that might appear on iOS have much less access to the device and your data than they do on Android OS. That is unless your device is jailbroken – then it’s effectively wide open.
[ via Android Police, WMPowerUser ]
 The massively multiplayer online RPG marketplace has yet to really take off on mobile platforms, especially as established players in the MMO space have yet to really attack mobile devices at all, allowing newcomers to unleash their ideas on these platforms. Spacetime Studios have explored the mobile MMORPG market themselves with the crossplatform Pocket Legends, a fantasy MMORPG that was launched on iOS, and later found its way to Android. However, Spacetime Studios are now setting their eyes on the stars, with a very cool new project: launching their sci-fi MMORPG Blackstar on iOS and Android later this year.
Based on Spacetime Studios’ crossplatform Spacetime Engine that they’ve been working on with Pocket Legends, Blackstar is described as a “3D, real-time, persistent MMO,” that was originally designed as a PC title that was in development for PC before funding ran out in 2008. The story of Blackstar takes place in the 41st century between three distinct races, the alien Riven, the cybernetic Scorn, and the human Mode. The game promises to lose very little from its original incarnation in this transition to mobile, promising thousands of items to collect, and a robust set of social features to chat and team up with people in game. Spacetime Studios’ CEO, Gary Gattis says ““Blackstar’s production design and overall polish will be unmatched in mobile gaming. We were able to nurture the IP to its maximum potential through years of development – a luxury never before seen in Mobile gaming.” Spacetime Studios has provided a screenshot of the game, still in development:
The game will be fully 3D, support both iOS devices and Android (including tablet-sized devices), and will be playable over EDGE, 3G, 4G, and of course Wi-Fi connections. With the game not only launching on both Android and iOS sometime in Q2 2011, but also being based on a fully-fledged MMORPG once in development for PC, the traditional home of these games, Blackstar shows a lot of promise. Due to the speed that the mobile market moves at, developers often don’t have the time to nurture and develop an idea like how Spacetime Studios has had with Blackstar – and they have also had the time to work on and perfect their mobile technology with Pocket Legends. With both the impressive and developed concept, along with proven technology, Blackstar could prove to be huge when it launches later this year on iOS and Android.
FREE! + Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
Released: 2010-04-08 :: Category: Games
I don’t know who I am any more.
On This Episode:
Carter reveals a shameful secret to this week’s co-host Brett Nolan: Carter has made the switch to Android. He discusses with Brett the big differences between iOS and Android, and just what he likes about his Galaxy S that the iPhone didn’t have.
Carter however hasn’t given up on iOS gaming at all, as him and Brett talk about recent iOS releases Astronut and Silverfish.
Who We Are:
Host: Carter Dotson
Co-Host: Brett Nolan – Editor in Chief, AppAddict.net
Music:
“Beatnes7 (Theme to The Portable Podcast)” by The Eternal – Download on iTunes here:
How to Listen:
Click Here to Subscribe in iTunes:
Click Here to Subscribe via RSS.
Listen on WRGT Radio every Friday at 4pm Central
Listen Here:
Podcast: Play in new window
| Download
Apps Mentioned in This Episode:
FREE! iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2010-11-16 :: Category: Games $1.99 iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2010-11-09 :: Category: Games
In an attempt to cash in on the “check in” craze created by Foursquare and its ilk, the NBA has announced Turnstile, a new app which will allow fans to alert their friends when they’re attending a game in person or watching on television. Those who consistently check in may be eligible to receive discounts or loyalty rewards at local venues.
 “We see location based services as just the tip of the iceberg,” says Bryan Perez, senior vice president and general manager of NBA Digital. “The more we can integrate people’s location information at games, the more opportunities there are for things like sponsorships,” he says, adding there are no sponsorships for Turnstile in place currently.
The move places the NBA in line with MLB, the NHL and some NFL teams who are all using some sort of social media check in platform to increase fan engagement and interaction. While most of these other leagues are utilizing Foursquare for their social media, Turnstile is being built from the ground-up exclusively for the NBA.
The app is planned to launch in concert with the start of the NBA regular season later this month and will be available for free on the iPhone, Blackberry and Android. Just keep in mind that if your Cleveland friends see you checking into a Miami Heat game you may well find your house vandalized or on fire when you return home.
[via The Wall Street Journal]
On This Episode:
OpenFeint currently stands at a crossroads – with Apple taking on OpenFeint in the metagaming space on iOS, they find themselves trying to remain relevant in the long-term. And as of today, it appears as if OpenFeint is looking beyond iOS for the future of their products. Today, OpenFeint is announcing that they are launching their service and Feint Spotlight app for the Android Marketplace, along with launch month titles such as Fruit Ninja from Halfbrick, MiniSquadron from MrFungFung, Flick Kick Football from PikPok, and Mega Jump from Get Set Games.
 The CEO of OpenFeint, Jason Citron, was kind enough to sit down and speak with me about this announcement and what OpenFeint is doing in the future on iOS. According to Jason, OpenFeint’s goal is to unify the various platforms – for people to be able to play games with their friends on other phones, to bridge the gap between the various hardware that people have. As well as their future on Android, OpenFeint is launching tools for developers to let their OpenFeint scoring and achievement systems work with Game Center easily while still taking advantage of OpenFeint features that Game Center does not provide, such as replays, asynchronous multiplayer services, and the upcoming voice chat feature PlayTime, launching with OpenFeint 3.0.
Jason Citron spoke at length with me on the new episode of The Portable Podcast to discuss what they’re doing on Android, the challenges that Android’s various devices bring, and the perception of the Android market versus the reality of the situation. On the iOS side, we talk about how Game Center and OpenFeint can coexist (including Jason recommending that developers take advantage of Game Center), and how iOS fits in the future of OpenFeint.
Who Are We:
Host: Carter Dotson
Guest: Jason Citron, OpenFeint
Music:
“Beatnes7 (Theme to The Portable Podcast)” by The Eternal – Download on iTunes here:
“Nanocarp” by The Eternal
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FREE! iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2010-01-08 :: Category: Games
 OpenFeint announced today that their social gaming network SDK has been released for Android developers. They have also announced some heavy hitting iPhone games that have been ported to Android and will be out this month. In addition, they will be working with game developers to help promote the best games that utilize their SDK both to consumers and to carriers.
OpenFeint is the leader in social gaming networks for the iOS platform with over 28 million users. They hope to bring this kind of success to the Android platform by releasing their SDK at the same time as a slew of iOS games that support OpenFeint are ported over. Time will tell if it will take off on Android like it has on iOS, but the launch is really strong.
Read the full article over at network site AndroidRundown »
 As I am sure you know all to well, today the folks over in Cupertino have a bit of an event planned. It is suspected that they will be discussing new Apple gaming initiatives such as their recently announced GameCenter. While you would think that larger over-arching services like this would be good for the iOS platform, it may spell doom for smaller cross-game communication platforms like OpenFeint. So how do such niche services hope to survive? The keyword of the day is: Diversify.
Earlier this month the leadership over at OpenFeint let slip of plans to open their platform to Android users. This was a complex system of inviting friends to play games via email and to put it quite frankly, seemed a bit cluedgey. Well it looks like they were listening and went back to the drawing board a bit, as today they are ready to announce their newest development for cross-platform gaming: PlayTime.
Cross-Platform gaming is no big deal, right? Wrong! This is a huge step forward that looks to dodge the earlier stumbling blocks of exchanging emails and the like. Here is what the platform is bringing to the table:
- It’s the first ever real-time multiplayer gaming system that functions between Android and iPhone.
- Unlike Apple’s Game Center which is planning to provide a real-time gaming solution and requires peer to peer connections, PlayTime will keep games in play even if one gamer drops connection due to AT&T for example. The game continues with artificial intelligence computer opponent. This is the ideal scenario for mobile game play due to inconsistent network connectivity. Apple’s solution will disconnect the entire game if one player loses connection.
- The one-day install SDK makes this technology available to the masses i.e. indie and mid-level developers who otherwise couldn’t implement it.
- It enables voice chat for trash talking between Android and iPhone gamers.
- PlayTime is fully compatible with Apple’s Game Center
The first point that just jumps out at me is the odd irony that thought his is a product that will compete with GameCenter, it still will be fully compatible with it. I am guessing that this will help to take the guess work out of matchmaking between other iOS devices. But this product isn’t about just competing with Apple, it is about expanding the reach of the mobile gaming community and unifying them under one platform.
Initially PlayTime will launch in two tiers: Casual and Core. The “Casual SDK” as it is being called, will allow you to either turn traditionally single player games into a multiplayer experience by adding in leaderboards, or compete in turn-based games such as what you would find in a game like Words With Friends. This will also integrate into OpenFeint’s existing Achievement system, which will in turn handle the heavy lifting of integrating into Apple’s GameCenter. When you consider that they are also adding in voice chat between devices and a unified matchmaking platform, this is beginning to look like a fairly intriguing package. The scary part is that this is just the tip of the iceberg.
 With the “Core SDK” developers will be getting the identical feature set of the casual tier, along with a more impressive multiplayer offering. Partnering with networking engine developer Exit Games, PlayTime Core will allow for up to sixteen players to simultaneously engage in multiplayer action. OpenFeint is trying to get their new service as close to par with Systems like Xbox LIVE by also roping in VoIP service to these matches as well.
“The most successful games have one thing in common: they bring people together. Whether a simple board game or a stunning 3D console game, games are always better when shared with family or friends. Traditionally, multiplayer technology has been accessible only to top tier developers. It’s just too complicated and time consuming. So we invented PlayTime, which literally takes one day to integrate into a casual game.” – Jason Citron, CEO of Aurora Feint.
If in fact PlayTime is something that can be integrated into an application in less than a day this is something that everyone should be excited about. Just think of it this way: If you are a developer and you have the option to down the road expand your application’s install base to the Android, with only a day worth of work for the netcode, you would be insane NOT to.
The most appealing part of this entire package is that the SDK will be scalable to the needs of an individual developer. Prices have not been announced yet, but I am guessing that they will scale accordingly as well, with the “Core” level being the more expensive of the two. Either way, this looks like it could be an impressive development to multiplayer gaming on the iOS, as long as Apple doesn’t do something to elbow them off the platform all together. But then that would be a monopoly, right? And we all know how much corporations love anti-trust lawsuits. Here’s looking at you Microsoft.
At the end of the day it comes right down to wondering if this is the wave of the future with respect to the portable gaming platforms. I would argue that not only is it the future, but it is an inevitability. The Android and iOS platforms are close enough in form that they could easily compete against one another. I guess we will have to see what happens then PlayTime launches as part of OpenFeint 3.0 later this year.
If you are a developer that is interested in seeing what all the hype is all about, you can sign up to evaluate a beta version of PlayTime at the OpenFeint Developer Connection.
 Today we have more exciting news to announce. We’ve launched a new site covering Android games and apps – Android Rundown!
You may be asking why Android and why now? While personally I think the iOS is still by far the best mobile operating system, there are a considerable number of people that can’t, for one reason or another, use an iPhone. Could be the choice of carriers, rules their employers have put in place, etc. Android is the second best mobile app platform and is growing quickly. There are now nearly 100,000 Android apps — and we want to cover them. We want to bring our well-proven formula of editorial reviews, top app lists, price drops, etc. to the Android world. We’re pretty sure you want us to do that, too.
Another big reason to launch now is that the Android app market seems to be on the very edge of a large expansion. One of the big reasons is that until recently Android phones were not good app phones. Most Android devices were only given 512MB of storage space (or less) for apps. That has finally changed. The Android OS was recently modified to allow phones to store apps on a storage card and most phones released these days have 16 GB of on board storage. This eliminates a huge roadblock to app adoption for users of most Android phones.
In addition, we’re seeing more and more iPhone developers release their apps on Android as well. We’ve seen the big guys like EA, Gameloft, and Namco already — we can expect others soon. And we can’t forget the indies — they are releasing on Android in ever increasing numbers as well.
What does this mean for 148Apps? Really, not too much. We’re just trying out what we’ve built here at 148Apps in the Android world. You won’t see any changes here at 148Apps. You might see the occasional cross post when there’s a subject that applies to both platforms, but that’s not much different than now.
If you’re curious about the Android world, take a look and let us know what you think. Cheers!
Coming way in third place, Android has 1/3 the market share of the iPhone in spite of the possibility that it outsold the iPhone last quarter. In spite of having a good quarter, Android failed to gain on Apple if these numbers from Neilsen are to be believed.
The numbers put Apple in second place (29%) behind BlackBerry maker Research In Motion, which has a 35 percent share. In third place is Microsoft Windows Mobile with 19 percent, followed by Google (9 percent), Palm (4 percent), Linux (3 percent), and Symbian (2 percent).
Apple and Google both moved up by 2 percent in the first quarter of 2010. In the same period, RIM and Microsoft both lost 2 percent market share.
We had heard that Android outsold the iPhone last quarter, but these number make me believe that isn’t the case. While we don’t know the total numbers, just percentages, math tells us that 2% of the 29% market share of iPhone is a greater number than 2% of the 9% market share Android has. That means that Android failed to gain any ground on the iPhone last quarter.
Math is hard. Let’s go shopping for a new iPhone!
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