Tag: Valentine's Day »

Ah, Valentine's day. That wonderful day where those in relationships set huge expectations for perfect romantic escapades that can seldom be met by their partner and singles wish they could share in the homage to Hallmark and Cupid. Finding the right thoughtful token or date locale doesn't have to be an expensive ordeal, however. As always there are a bevy of holiday-themed apps that claim to help make the day either more special or more commercial depending on your point of view. We have collected our favorite four apps for singles and couples looking to make the most of February 14 without waking up broke on the 15th.

Build-a-Card Cupid Edition
Heartfelt words, to a lover, relative or friend, can make them feel special and cherished. Greeting cards are the most traditional way of sending sentiments, but printed brick-and-mortar shop cards are expensive and seldom say exactly what you want. e-cards are less expensive, but it's still hard to find the right one and harder still to keep them out of spam filters. Build-a-Card Cupid Edition is packed full of love-themed templates and graphic elements to allow users to customize valentines with their own words and photos. These particularly pretty cards can then then be sent via email, Twitter or Facebook and you can send as many as you like for less than the price of a single dead tree card.

iWrite Love Poems
If sending a card is touching, nothing is more romantic or traditional than sending an original stanza or three of romantic poetry to your beloved. Sadly, however, not all of us are gifted wordsmiths. If you are looking for some help in composing a grand romantic ode or a simple rhyming couplet, iWrite Love Poems, an App Store Valentine staple, can help. It offers eight types of poems from seductive to wistful, general style tips and if the creative juice still won't flow, the app creates its own loving verses. The GUI would benefit from an iOS 5 makeover, but there is in-app email sharing to pass along the love notes.

Urban Spoon
A classy dinner date to a hot spot or intimate eatery doesn't have to break the bank. With Urban Spoon's apps, not only do dates have endless dining options worldwide, but all you have to do to impress and stay solvent is pick a location, cuisine, and price range. A shake or spin will provide a hip dining spot to enjoy and a way to impress that special someone with your culinary savvy.

OK Cupid
We promised we would't leave out singles, and we haven't with card makers and restaurant suggesters, but if you are looking for a hot Valentine's date, or for that perfect someone, OK Cupid, the app for the well-known dating site, can certainly help. Subscribers can access all the profiles and interact on the fly from the privacy of their palm. Based on the community size there should be someone for almost everyone. And if you still don't find that perfect someone, at least not in time, there are a ton of valentine updates to popular iPhone games to tide you over until Mr or Ms right finds you.

EA and Firemint's Spy Mouse has an update out now that's designed to be more appropriate for this time of year, with Valentine's Day coming up. Love is in the air, and while the cats in Agent Squeek's life are still out to keep him from getting his cheese, everything is a lot more lovey-dovey. The app icon shows not a stern and focused Agent Squeek, but a more charmed Agent Squeek, presenting delicious chocolate for a willing suitor. The whole menu is now Valentine's-themed, which means that it's more pink and heart-filled. In-game, the cheese crumbs that give bonus points are now hearts. As well, those cats now get hearts over their head when they spy Agent Squeek, broken heart icons when the try to grab him and miss. Plus, when they do get him, it's now a heart-filled dust cloud. Okay. This alternate interpretation of Spy Mouse update is available now for both iPhone/iPod touch and iPad versions of the game.

Fans of enjoyable time management game Cooking Dash will have noticed, in recent times, the addition of the 'HSN Cooks with Emeril' venue, incorporating celebrity chef Emeril Lagasse and HSN, the Home Shopping Network. Such an addition gave players special discounts on real-life Emeril kitchenware.

With Valentine's Day just around the corner, such a promotion has gone one step further. By signing up from within the game, players can receive a free bread pudding recipe by Emeril Lagasse, as well as a coupon for 15% off their entire next purchase at HSN.com. Players can find the recipe inside the aforementioned 'HSN Cooks with Emeril' restaurant venue.

Cooking Dash, and its Deluxe sibling, is already a fantastic example of the time management genre, easily bringing countless hours of entertainment. The romantic touch makes it all the more worthwhile to give a play. It's an ideal inclusion for such a cookery focused title.

Why not check it out now?

Valentine's Day is a mere two weeks away which means only two weeks to figure out the best way to declare one's love to someone.

Back in the day, one great and very cute way of doing it was to create a loved one a mix tape full of songs that made them think of romantic memories. Tapes may be long gone but Herd.fm modernizes the process.

Using Herd.fm, the user can select up to five songs from their iTunes catalogue then send them to a loved one with the tap of a few buttons. The loved one can then stream the songs in full from SoundCloud or YouTube and appreciate the sentiment behind choosing each track.

Of course, it's an idea that can be used just as well between friends for the single iOS device user. Plus, Herd.fm makes music recommendations based on the music shared!

Herd.fm is out now and it's free to download.

I don't know if you are beginning to feel the same as me, but I am starting to wonder if the development team over a Rovio has something against sleeping.  Between a Super Bowl update to the first installment in the Angry Birds series and a Rio themed sequel on the way, you would think that they would have their hands full.  But with their third headline grabbing piece of news in as many weeks, there is more love coming to Angry Birds fans everywhere.

This time around, it is Angry Birds Seasons that is getting some love in the form of a Valentines Day themed update.  Though it is significantly smaller than the Christmas update that brought an additional twenty-five stages, on top of the initial Halloween offering of forty-five levels, these additional eighteen challenges are sure to continue to whet your whistle for more disgruntled fowl fun.

As always, these updates come to you at no charge, as long as you have purchased the base Angry Birds Seasons application.  Now this raises the next obvious question: what will be the next holiday that we get to explore through the eyes of these swine hating birdbrains?  I certainly don't think we will be seeing a President's Day update and Ash Wednesday may be a bit too morbid, not to mention non-secular.  If I were a betting man, I would be putting my money on a St. Patrick's Day themed pack.  That said, drowning the pigs in steins of beer might be a tad culturally insensitive.

What do you think will be the next holiday celebrated in Angry Birds Seasons?  Now that I think aboutit , Mardi Gras seems just ripe for the picking - just remember you heard it here first. Let us know what you think in the comments.