Figure Review
Price: 0.99
Version Reviewed: 1.3
Device Reviewed On: iPhone 5
iPhone Integration Rating:





User Interface Rating:





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Overall Rating:





At the heart of Figure is an interface that is at once simple and beguiling. A quick tap is all that's needed to switch between drum, bass and lead tracks across the top of the screen, while at the bottom, edits can be made to rhythm patterns, the key of the song itself and the overall sound mix, not to mention various tweaks that can be made to each of the primary sounds. It took a little bit of playing around with Figure to understand exactly what each menu system allowed and contributed to the overall loop I was creating, but the joy of the app is that it encourages play. Once completed (in as much as any piece is ever fully completed in Figure), sharing is relatively simple, as loops can be sent to iTunes (during syncing), or copied from one app to another using Audiocopy. I'd like to see the sharing options become a bit more robust (Facebook, anyone?), but at least there's a straightforward way of transferring completed pieces off of the iPhone or iPad.
Certainly there are those naysayers out there who look at an app like this as a toy, and to that I say, "What's wrong with that?" Yes, Figure is a simple beat-creation toy, but I doubt you'll find another toy with as much depth as this Propellerhead creation.