Apple iPhone Apps | Gear Diary

Bento 4 for iPad iOS Review

As someone who is self-employed, I have a lot of things in my business life that I need to keep track of, and a database app like Bento 4 can help keep me sane. Is it something that could help you? Read on to decide. Bento 4 is effectively a database application for the everyman, and several on the Gear Diary team have also found it useful. Whether it’s keeping track of your DVD collection, exercise regime, or members of your kid’s baseball team, Bento will provide. When you first start the Bento 4 app, you’ll be offered a selection…

Game Diary, Reviews

Foursies for iOS Game Review

The conversion of a board game to a smartphone game can be tricky, due to getting controls and the feel of the game correct. For that reason I haven’t been a big fan of games like the Wii version of Monopoly. But a game like Connect 4 seems to be a natural – the controls are simple, and the flow and view of the game work perfectly on small screens as well as tablets. But to make it really stand out there needs to be a twist, so let’s see how they did in my Foursies for iOS Game Review!…

News & Features

PhotoCal with Event for iOS Puts Photos in Timely Context

Yunasoft Inc.’s PhotoCal for iOS Remember those peanut butter and chocolate “Two great tastes that taste great together” commercials of yore? I wonder if Yunasoft had that in mind when they created PhotoCal with Event for iOS. By combining the date and time users have taken pictures using their iOS device with events existing in their calendar, PhotoCal puts images and events in an easy-to-use calendar layout that makes locating and arranging photos as easy as pie. Best of all, PhotoCal autoarranges the images and inserts them into the day they were downloaded/taken, right down to the minute the pictures…

Game Diary, Reviews

Hidden Wonders of the Depths HD for iPad Review

In the world of casual gaming, the dominant game type os Hidden Object adventures, followed by Match 3 games. Match 3 games have come a long way since Bejeweled, with RPGs such as Puzzle Quest being the most obvious example of taking the standard format in a new direction. G5 has just released a new game based on Match 3 gameplay, but it offers much more than that. So let’s take a look at Hidden Wonders of the Depths HD for iPad! Type of app: Match-3 Puzzle game Platform/where to buy: iPad (iPhone version available here); available in the iTunes…

Reviews

Clash of Clans for iOS Review

My latest and greatest addiction came from a source I never thought would put me on an iOS game; the bow hunting forum that I actively participate in had a post about joining the Texas Bow Hunters clan on Clash of Clans. Several of the members expressed their enjoyment of the game, so I thought maybe it was time to try it out. In a few short days, the game has become a huge addiction, and it turns out to be a lot of fun. Let’s take a quick look. Clash of Clans is a combat strategy game that requires…

News & Features

Martian Watch Gets Smarter with iOS App

For us, one of the CES 2013 hits was the rapidly emerging smart watch category. During the Electronics Show Judie attended a media event from the makers of the Pebble smart watch, we saw many wearing the I’m Watch as the company tried to stealth promote their (mostly disappointing) offering, and we spent over an hour in a private meeting with the key players at Martian Watch. (Read the post.) Judie and I both walked away with watches, and I’m glad we did. You see, for my money, the Martian Watch is currently at the top of the smart watch…

Game Diary, News & Features

XCOM Enemy Unknown Coming to iOS Devices This Summer

Last October I reviewed the excellent PC game XCOM Enemy Unknown, noting that the game offered an incredible depth of gameplay and strategic options. So I am thrilled to learn that XCOM Enemy Unknown coming to iOS devices this summer. In an article at Polygon, lead developer Jake Solomon talks about how the game released for PC and consoles makes a perfect fit for iOS devices – and in particular the iPad. You will also be able to play on your iPhone and iPod Touch, though I am sure there will be limits to which generations of devices will be…

News & Features

Google Keep Launches – Google’s Evernote and OneNote Answer

I was just starting to listen to This Week in Google live after work, when right before the show they shouted Google just launched Google Keep! I’ve already got it installed on my phones and my tablet. What IS Google Keep? It’s very similar to services like Evernote or OneNote. It’s designed to take notes, make checklists, and more. It hangs off of your Google Drive, and it uses the new real-time API that Google also announced this week. Google Keep doesn’t appear to support tagging like Evernote does, and while you can import pictures into your Google Keep, it does not appear to look at…

Reviews

Simple Bracket for iPhone Review

iPhone and iPad apps for anyone on a budget. Nothing over $.99! It’s March, and you know what that means! I am not referring to the impending spring season or melting of the snow in the north. Yes, the birds are chirping and the time change means the sun stays high a little later for us all, but there are more important things that happen in March. Sunday, the bracket was announced for the March Madness tournament; 64 NCAA Div. 1 basketball teams will enter the tournament with an equal shot to be crowned this year’s national champion. There are favorites, but every…

Reviews

Mailbox App Review – Is Email Conquered for Good?

It has been a little over a week since I started using the Mailbox app as my main email organizer, and I have finally settled into a rhythm and have a handle on how it works. It’s incredibly easy to grasp once you get it set up, and I am still as smitten with it as I was last week in my first impressions post. But here are the real question: is it worth the long wait to gain access? And is all the hype that’s surrounded it since before its launch justified? Read on for my take! First, let’s…

News & Features, Outdoors

TrackingPoint Releases Precision Guided Firearm iOS Simulator App

We first broke news of TrackingPoint and their Precision Guided Firearm system during this year’s CES. The system is a custom-built rifle and scope combination that makes long-range shooting much more accurate. Using the XactSystem, shooters tag, track and hit their target with pinpoint accuracy. TrackingPoint has just released Precision Hunter Lite which allows iOS users to experience their revolutionary technology. The free application is basically a first person shooter that replicates the Precision Guided Firearm experience. Using the head’s up display, users practice utilizing the XactSystem to successfully make ethical shots at extreme distances. Users choose their quarry then…

Reviews

Winston for iPhone Review

Ever since Siri hit iOS, the idea of using voice features on my phone has become quite interesting. While Siri does not do exactly what I would like yet, I am always looking for other apps that add voice functionality. Sometimes I do not need to dictate to my phone, but would not mind my phone speaking information to me. With this in mind I found a nifty app called Winston. With a polite disposition and English accent, Winston presents stories from social media and news feeds as a personalized briefing. All you have to do is sign into…

Reviews

iStopMotion for iOS Demo and Review

The iPhone, iPad and iPod touch offer terrific ways to play with your pictures. iStopMotion for iOS is one of the best. I used the app years ago when it first came out but have recently revisited it and like what I found. Using iStopMotion for iOS on my iPad and the free companion app on my iPhone 5 I was quickly and easily able to make a stop motion video. Here’s a quick look at iStopMotion for iOS and the video that resulted from my using it. iStopMotion for iOS is just $9.99 and it is a ton of…

Reviews

Mailbox App First Impressions

Are you drowning in email? Do you use your inbox as a rolling to-do list? Do you constantly leave emails unread so you remember to answer them later? Mailbox aims to change all that. In case your Twitter feed didn’t explode with people reserving their access to the app, Mailbox is an email app for the iPhone that forces more organized email habits. The goal of the app is to get to Inbox Zero, either by archiving emails, moving them to lists for future reference, or setting a timer to pop them back into your inbox when you have time…

Reviews

Seagate Wireless Plus Lets You Take Your Data With You, Review

We first saw Seagate’s GoFlex Satellite Wireless Storage device at CES 2011. (Read the Review) In March of 2012 we announced that the company was releasing a firmware update for the GoFlex Satellite that made it faster and more convenient. (Read the post.) Now Seagate has released their Wireless Plus. It lets you stream media and files to a variety of devices including tablets, smartphones and computers. The Seagate Wireless Plus can store and carry over 500 movies or thousands of songs, photos and documents. And, thanks to the free Seagate Media app- available for iPad, iPhone, Kindle Fire and…

Game Diary, Reviews

Might & Magic Clash of Heroes for iPad Review

I remember when Might & Magic Clash of Heroes for the Nintendo DS arrived. It was an oddity of a game in that I was immediately prepared to hate – a new game for a new platform by a new developer in a totally unrelated genre with a familiar name; I was like most fans of the original feeling that it was likely someone was trying to cash in by attaching a familiar name to a mediocre game. So imagine my surprise when I called Might & Magic Clash of Heroes ‘one of the best DS games of 2009’ in a…

Game Diary, News & Features

Ultima Forever Quest for the Avatar Gets a First Video Preview

There are classics, and then there are CLASSICS … and Ultima IV is one of the absolute classics in all of gaming. I have played it several times through the years, but owing to age and technology changes it is a difficult game for younger gamers to really enjoy. Now it is coming back as Ultima Forever Quest for the Avatar, launching on iOS in the spring of 2013. We have known about the game for a while, but now we get some first looks and a video sneak peek! Much of the classic Ultima world is maintained, though now…

Reviews

Picashare Picasa Sync iOS App Review

I hate synching my devices to computers. It’s much simpler to use iCloud and Photostream than it is to fire up the beast that is iTunes these days. In an all-iOS environment, this works great. But if I have a number of photos that need to be edited in Picasa, it’s a pain to download what I need from Photostream or email them back and forth to myself. Picashare for iOS can upload photos to Picasa and Google+, but does it really make life that much easier? Read on for the full review! Picashare is pretty simple. Log in with…

Reviews

Shot Note Pad and App Helps Save Your Notes and Memories

If you take notes with a pen and paper and incorporate those notes into your digital life, the Shot Note Pad and iOS app may be just the thing. Each Shot Note Pad looks like a standard writing tablet, but when used in conjunction with the free app the pads make it easy to capture your notes, drawings and diagrams in digital form. I’ve been trying the Shot Note Pad and app out for a few weeks, and I think they are a decent way to merge traditional and digital workflows. Let’s take a look. The Shot Note Pad looks like any inexpensive standard paper,…

Game Diary, News & Features

Super Stickman Golf 2 – Gear Diary’s Sneak Preview

What does Super Stickman Golf 2 and The Godfather: Part II have in common? If you guessed that they’re both sequels, well yes, that’s true, but there’s something even better! They are both sequels that are greater than their predecessors. Is it a little too early to call, since SSG2 is only in beta testing? Probably, however the game is already so polished that you can tell how well it’s going to do. There are many great additions to the original gameplay that it still feels like the same game you loved, yet it also feels like a sequel. Noodlecake…

Game Diary, Reviews

Inbetween Land HD for iPad Review

Type of app: Hidden Object Puzzle Adventure (HOPA) game Platform/where to buy: iPad, (iPhone version here); available in the iTunes App Store Developer: Specialbit Studio / G5 Entertainment Description: • 52 Fascinating locations to explore • 19 Thought-provoking mini games • 3 Game modes: Casual, Normal, Expert • 4 Engaging comics • Out-of-this-world storyline Major features: I have to admit to not being the hugest fan of Inbetween Land for the Mac. It wasn’t a bad game by any stretch, nor were there any technical issues, it was just a game that didn’t ‘grab me’ unlike so many other G5…