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Bring a Classic to Life with Peter Pan: Disney Classics

Posted by Brad Hilderbrand on March 12th, 2012
+ Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad

Even though times and people's tastes change, there are still a few things that are consistently magical across generations. Among them are the timeless Disney animated features, and now one of the all-time greatest is getting a makeover for the iPad. Peter Pan: Disney Classics not only lets kids read along with the well-known tale, but also includes games, puzzles, and other fun activities along the way.

Perhaps the best way to think of Peter Pan: Disney Classics is as a digital activity book. Kids can enjoy the coloring section and then email or save their work, put together puzzles that recreate scenes from the story, play musical instruments, and play memory matching games. The app is also set up to allow users to read the story themselves or have it read to them with professional narration and classic sound effects from the movie.

And hey, we know this isn't just for kids so if you want to download it for yourself to relive your childhood we're not going to judge you. Peter Pan is awesome, and you have every right to revisit the story. Just please don't send us your coloring book pages because that would be weird.

This Week at 148Apps: February 27-March 2

Posted by Chris Kirby on March 5th, 2012

This week at 148Apps.com, we checked out the long-awaited release of Readability, via a quick overview and full review from Lisa Caplan. Caplan writes, "The app provides the same service and merges seamlessly with the web versions. Users open to a blank page with just a menu. Filling the app is the the reader’s job. Users can search the web or enter an URL manually. The app pulls the article, pretties it up, and places a lead-in on the home screen.

I found it faster to just surf on my Mac adding articles that appealed as I found them, but how one fills the app is a small matter. What Readability does with the content is the cool bit. I tested the universal build on an iPad and it works wonderfully in both orientations. In landscape the articles fill the main pane and a well-designed and unobtrusive sidebar has the menu. In portrait the sidebar is a tiny top bar."

Read our full review on 148Apps.

Meanwhile, our sister site Giggleapps.com dug deep into the garden of apps and came up with a review of The Giant Turnip: A Kidztory Classic Animated Interactive Storybook. Reviewer Amy Solomon says, "As always, the look of this app is delightful, with wonderful colors and textures and fun use of music incorporated into a style utterly recognizable as a Kidztory storybook. I appreciate the warm browns and green shades seen in the land where the turnip is planted, along with the noticeable brush strokes for a lovely effect. Possibly more so than other apps from this series, nothing is flat-looking within this app as every animal or other detail has its own imperfect texture that layered together on the page really brings a richness to this story that adults may enjoy even more than their children."

Read the full review on Giggleapps.com.

Finally, 148Apps.biz updated GameSpy's progress on its GameSpy Open platform. Brad Hilderbrand writes, "Today GameSpy announced that there are over 600 titles in development for its year-old GameSpy Open platform. The stable of upcoming titles includes games like Warm Gun, Skullgirls and more, with a total of 1200 developers hard at work on new projects."

Read more on 148Apps.biz.

The old week is done. Bring on the new week, with the promise of the iPad 3 just around the corner. In the meantime, follow us on Twitter or Like us on Facebook to keep abreast of the latest reviews, news items and contests right when they happen. See you next week!

This Week at 148Apps: February 6-10

Posted by Chris Kirby on February 12th, 2012

This week at 148Apps.com, we celebrated the release of Tweetbot, version 2.0. Blake Grundman and Jennifer Allen broke the news, then Carter Dotson wrote the full review. Dotson says, "There are very few apps that someone could say 'this has been released!' that I would buy immediately. Tweetbot for iPad was apparently on that list, because as soon as I saw on Twitter that the iPhone/iPod touch Twitter client was now available on iPad, I went out and bought it sight-unseen with an urgency unlike the way I approach many other things in my life."

Read the full review on 148Apps.com.

Meanwhile, on Giggleapps, reviewer Amy Solomon took a closer look at interactive storybook The Gnat and the Lion. She says, "My kids (ages 10 and 7) and I listened to the read-aloud story and watched the animated short film together before bedtime. We liked the animation, and watching African animals such as the lion and the rhino encouraged a discussion about African grasslands and the animals that live there. We liked the fact that the words are highlighted as the narrator reads them, which is very helpful for children who are learning to read. We also liked the narrator’s voice and accent and how it tied into the African-themed story."

Read more at GiggleApps.com.

Finally, at 148Apps.biz, writer Brad Hilderbrand reported on the explosion of app usage during last week's Super Bowl. Hildebrand states, "Sunday night’s Super Bowl matchup between the New England Patriots and New York Giants was a classic, but according to a new report from Flurry most viewers were just as likely to be staring at their smartphone screen as they were the game. The company used analytics software built into many popular apps to surmise that of the 111 million people watching the Super Bowl, an estimated 98 million spent at least some time futzing with an app."

Read the full report at 148Apps.biz.

Another week down, but don't forget to stay on top of all things related to the app-nation through us. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook to get the latest news, reviews and contests right out of the gate. In the immortal words of Garrison Keillor, be well, do good work, and keep in touch. See you next week.

This Week at 148Apps, December 5-9

Posted by Chris Kirby on December 11th, 2011
+ Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad

This week at 148Apps.com, we opened the floodgates for the 2011 Best App Ever Awards. Site founder Jeff Scott writes, "In its fourth year, the Best App Ever awards is a people’s choice awards for apps. Last year over 500,000 votes were cast in the quest to find the best apps, not just the best selling. This year it’s back bigger and better than ever. In a big change this year, not just iOS but also Android applications and games are up for nomination in the awards competition. Users can nominate their favorite apps and games in any of the multiple categories by heading to the app nomination page and choosing a category."

Read more about the 2011 Best App Ever Awards on 148Apps.

Over at GiggleApps, our site dedicated to reviewing the latest apps for kids, reviewer Amy Solomon took a closer look at the new Charlie Brown Christmas App, saying, "It is lovely that children can decorate their own tree with included ornaments and other decorations, as well as a few that must be earned by finding all the hidden items as accomplishments. This area is found on the first title page of the book and can easily be overlooked as one starts to read. Please look for it. I am also smitten with the last page of this app where the characters are all shown with image and name, and a tap letting readers hear the line they are most noted for in this story, a great section for me to go over with my son as he is new to these characters."

Get into the Christmas spirit and read the full review on GiggleApps.

Finally, AndroidRundown writer Carter Dotson published a commentary regarding the recent CarrierIQ revelations. Dotson says, "Some of the fallout is settling from the explosive Carrier IQ revelations – naturally, most parties involved are denying any kind of wrongdoing, or even that their tools are even installed at all on the phones. Apps to search for the existence of the tools on phones now exist. As well, apparently even Carrier IQ was found on iOS devices, although Apple has pledged to remove them in a future iOS software update. Interestingly, one researcher has found that the software likely isn’t sending vast swaths of user personal information back to carriers and manufacturers, although there are still some questions about the data that is being recorded by Carrier IQ tools. In fact, a lot of this data may be used for benign purposes such as determining where phone calls are being dropped, rather than any kind of purpose of spying on user information."

Read the full CarrierIQ rundown on AndroidRundown.

We're done for this week. But next week brings us that much closer to Christmas, and closer to the new year. Keep informed by liking our Facebook page and following us on Twitter. Jingle on your merry way....and see you next week.

This Week at 148Apps, November 28-December 2

Posted by Chris Kirby on December 5th, 2011

This week at 148Apps.com, writer Carter Dotson reviewed one of the most anticipated iOS games in recent memory - Infinity Blade II. Dotson writes, "Most of what is new here is a modified and extended progression structure. Instead of one path leading to a final boss, where failure means starting over, there are now several of them, with more branching paths to explore. There are 3 different weapon types now: the traditional swords, slow and heavy axes that deal more damage, and speedy dual swords that deal less base damage, but can do double damage once combos are started. The story is more fleshed out, with actual speaking dialogue from characters besides the God King."

Read the full review at 148Apps.com.

Meanwhile, our attention was turned to more artistic matters at GiggleApps, as Amy Solomon reviewed Auryn – Van Gogh and the Sunflowers. Solomon says, "The look of this app is terrific, with illustrations evoking the style that Van Gogh is known for, complete with bold color choices and noticeable use of brush strokes, but maintains a childlike quality that fits well within this storybook. The jazzy music used is also wonderful, relaxing as well as engaging and very enjoyable to listen to even for long periods of time. The narration used here is also quite good. Parents will also like that each spoken word is highlighted red to aid the young children new to the world of reading."

Read more about our take on Auryn – Van Gogh and the Sunflowers at GiggleApps.

Finally, 148Apps.biz site editor Rob Lefebvre reported on tablet users and their media consumption. LeFebvre writes, "In a study put out by comScore and reported by Fierce Mobile Content and the appside, interested parties can see that the number one use of tablet devices is games, with 67% of surveyed tablet users saying they’ve played a game at least once in the past month, as compared to 49% of smartphone users surveyed. 23% of those surveyed said they’d played a game on their tablet EVERY DAY. That’s a good number."

Dig deeper into this study and read the full report on 148Apps.biz.

That's our wrap-up for this week. While you're out getting all of your holiday shopping done, don't forget to check us out on our Facebook and Twitter feeds to find out the latest and greatest news, reviews and contests. Feliz Navidad!

This Week at 148 Apps, November 21-25

Posted by Chris Kirby on November 26th, 2011

This week at 148Apps.com was all about the US celebration of Thanksgiving, and the inevitable retail aftermath known as Black Friday. Rather than fight the crowds, 148Apps founder Jeff Scott put together a comprehensive Black Friday app sale list that continues to grow, and grow and grow. Scott says, "App sales are nothing new, but the biggest of the year is here, and we’ll be tracking the best of the sale apps right here. Expect lots of updates over the weekend."

Take a look at the full list on 148Apps.

Jeff Scott also invited faithful 148Apps.biz readers to attend the upcoming AppNation III conference, saying, "Want to attend AppNation III? 148Apps network readers can get a 30% discount on the registration fee by using code 148APPS on the registration page."

Read more about the conference on 148Apps.biz.

Meanwhile, at AndroidRundown, site editor Rob LeFebvre celebrated the release of Disney interactive's Where's My Water? for the Android platform. LeFebvre writes, "Android has been part of the plan since the development of Where’s My Water? for the iPhone crowd. In fact, the game was originally developed with C++, to make it easier to port to Android. The challenge, he said, is making sure the game is the same high quality experience across the myriad devices represented by Google’s hip operating system."

Read the full story on AndroidRundown.

Finally, on our parent-friendly GiggleApps site, Amy Solomon reviewed Don't Let The Pigeon Run This App! Solomon writes, "I love these books. Pigeon can be cheeky, and my son has used pigeons’s one-liners, such as offering to “Give you five bucks” himself to try to stay up late. For this reason, some parents may feel that this pigeon is a bad influence on children, but I love the idea of my son practicing his ability to say “no” to this scheming pigeon as I want him to be prepared to stand his ground later in life when he is confronted by peer pressure, and I want him to recognize when he is being manipulated."

Read the full review on GiggleApps.

And that's a wrap for this Thanksgiving week! But don't forget to follow us on Twitter and "Like" us on Facebook to get the latest news, reviews and contests. See you next time!

This Week at 148Apps, October 31-November 4

Posted by Chris Kirby on November 7th, 2011

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.

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.

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!

Chillingo Releases Divergent Titles: Pixel Ranger And Cinderella Princess

Posted by Jennifer Allen on October 4th, 2011

It's a varied twosome for Chillingo's latest set of releases to the App Store. Both treading very different paths, one thing remains the same: the high quality touch that Chillingo apps always seem to offer.

First up is Pixel Ranger, a game that's described as a combination of Space Invaders and a Western. Players take control of a colorful cowboy as he blasts his way through anything that moves. The appearance is what will be most eye catching about Pixel Ranger offering an 8-bit style look with a hint of modern sheen making it extremely easy on the eye. Players must collect up pixels dropped by the enemies in order to achieve better high scores and gain more ammo. It's a formula we've seen before but one that's consistently entertaining. Over 50 levels are provided along with two different game modes: classic and endless and numerous different power ups and enemy attack patterns to keep things interesting. Pixel Ranger is out now for $0.99. Check out the trailer below.

On the other side of the gaming experience is Cinderella Princess, an interactive storybook of Cinderella. Based upon the popular Charles Perrault version of the tale, users will be able to not only listen to the classic story but also record their own voice as the narrator - a feature that will no doubt appeal to parents wishing to pass the app onto a young child. The book is detailed yet simple enough for youngsters with 25 pages of text and illustrations provided, with the option for English or French voice-overs.

Interactive elements are provided through the use of a definition section that offers pop up explanations of complicated words, stereoscopic 3D for users with 3D glasses close to hand, and a series of 7 different mini-games to make the action all the more exciting. Cinderella Princess is a universal app priced at $2.99.

Harold and the Purple Crayon GiggleApps Review

Posted by GiggleApps Staff on September 2nd, 2011
+ Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad

Harold and the Purple Crayon is a wondrous and thoughtful adaptation of the classic 1955 children’s book of the same name that had been developed into an interactive storybook, now a universal application.

I remember Harold and the Purple Crayon from my childhood and have shared this story with my son as well. Few children’s books that I can think of beg to be

turned into an interactive storybook as much as this one does, and I have been eagerly waiting for this to be developed into a universal app, knowing that at some point this was bound to happen.

I am very eager to introduce this app to readers who may not know of its existence. It is the perfect experience that I expected with every element thoughtfully conceived, making this book a joy to share with my son.

Read the full review at GiggleApps.

Apolline & Leon GiggleApps Review

Posted by Chris Kirby on August 11th, 2011
+ Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad

Apolline & Leon is a lovely and fun interactive universal storybook app that kids and adults will enjoy. This app includes an impressive nine languages, English, French, German, Spanish, Italian,

Russian, Portuguese, Chinese and Japanese, making this an excellent app for bilingual families or for those who may want to expose their children to the sounds of a different language. One can listen to narration or choose not to, and I like that a summary of pages is also included – always a nice addition.

Read the full review at GiggleApps.

Loris and the Runaway Ball Review

Posted by GiggleApps Staff on May 2nd, 2011
+ Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad

Loris and the Runaway Ball is a simple and lovely universal storybook app about the dangers of running into the street after a run-away ball.

As a parent, one of my biggest concerns is that my fearless child will run into the street to collect a stray ball or other toy and get hit by an oncoming car. As much as we talk about this in order to reinforce this important lesson, I worry that it is never enough for this utterly crucial message to sink in.

This is a sweet story, told from the point-of-view of a loving older brother Lincoln, about how one day he is playing with his little sister Loris and their ball rolls into the street, and now lincoln needs to save his sister from her horrible decision to go after the ball. Luckily the older brother does get to his sister just in time, something I have not yet had to do, and hope I never have to.

Read the full review at GiggleApps!

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