Price: Free     Score: 8/10     By A. Papachristos

The iTunes App Store is chock full of options.  No matter what you’re looking for, there truly is an app for that.  And, with so many developers creating similar apps, all trying to fill the same needs, their greatest task is to attract attention, making their product the one you simply cannot function without.  For those who are truly confident in what their product has to offer, the ideal (and easiest) way to attract new buyers is to offer a free sampling.

HiBye Free by shani hajbi, like its paid version ($0.99), is designed to help you organize your temporary contacts list so you do not accidentally delete important phone numbers from your already jumbled call list, allowing users to save numbers they may need to reference later, complete with timer and note functions.

With the timer function, users can add a temporary contact to their list, setting a specific expiration date for that contact.  This will ensure that these mainly extraneous phone numbers, email address and various other bits of information will not remain on your list too long and clutter the rest of your official contact list because, conveniently, HiBye Free syncs directly with the rest of your contacts.  When the life span of the contact is just about up, the timer will alert you so you can choose to permanently delete the contact or extend its life span.

Upon startup, users will see that the main screen is also the ‘Contacts’ tab, where they can find the list of all those temporary contacts they have added.  This is also the very place they can add more contacts to their list by using the ‘+’ icon in the top right corner.  When entering a new contact, users can enter the same types of information they normally do under the general contacts list on their device.  HiBye Free recommends adding a note so you always remember exactly why a given contact was saved to your temporary list.

In the top left corner, users will find the ‘Settings’ button.  Here, users can set their timer specifications.  With HiBye Free, users can only assign a timer of up to a week, while they can save a contact for up to a year with the full version.  However, this gives users a nice taste of HiBye’s capabilities.  Users may also enable the HiBye Dummy, which shows up in your regular contacts list.  Using the dummy, users can enter temporary contact information right from their contacts list, never having to launch HiBye Free to do so.

When contacts are about to expire, users will find their information under the ‘TimeOut’ tab, where they will be able determine the contact’s fate.  HiBye Free suits the iPhone user best because iPod Touch users would need to juggle two devices to maximize the app’s usefulness, inputting the information manually instead of extracting it directly from your log.

Users may access all these conveniences within the paid application, as well as advanced services including: setting the timer for up to one year; archiving your contacts with the ability to restore them with one click; creating custom contact categories.  However, HiBye Free does a great job of supplementing the main characteristic of the paid version, while dangling the appealing traits of the full version within a tempting distance of the consumer’s nose.

To view my original review of HiBye (paid edition), click here.

HiBye Free requires iPhone OS 3.0 or later and is compatible with iPhone and iPod Touch. A small expedite fee was paid by the developer to speed up the publication of this review.

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What people had been speculating about a possible Apple console before the announcement of the iPhone have on one hand turned out to be false, but on the other they have been proven right in a way. Because although Apple didn’t make a competitor to the Xbox 360, the Playstation 3 and the Wii, the iPhone turned out to be a strong competitor of the Sony PSP and the DSi. The company made a smartphone that’s very much capable of being used as a handheld gaming console.

Initially only the independent developers saw potential in the iPhone, but as the first small teams or even individuals made their first million from their iPhone games, the big publishers got really interested, and nowadays almost every larger title has a port for the iPhone, be it either the Force Unleashed or the Need for Speed: Shift. Of course these games are much simpler on the iPhone than on the bigger consoles, but the business is rolling.

Not to mention that the phone has a much stronger hardware than the first personal computers had, thus classics like Doom or Wolfenstein can be easily run on it, and since people still love these programs, there is an awful lot of money in these titles as well.

But people are not only seeking after the big names, they also love the smaller masterpieces that have just come out of the blue. Games from almost every genre can be found in the App Store, from tower-defense to platforming, there are hundreds of adventure and shooting titles, as well as numerous forms of Tetris and pinball. Just for comparison: the Sony PSP has around 600 games released, the Nintendo DS 4000, while on the iPhone there are more than 20000 games available, and that’s a very incredible number to say the least.

Of course these stats need a little explanation, since this number includes games that were being developed for about 2 days like Paper Toss, in which you have to throw pieces of paper into the bin.

So all in all the iPhone is still very much away from the PSP and the DSi in terms of depts and abilities, but I’m sure everyone could easily find at least 10 titles from the 20000 that he could enjoy very much, not to mention that a large portion of these games are either free, or cheaper than 1 dollar, and these are pretty strong arguments in favor of the iPhone for a consumer interested in games.

Related posts:

1. iPhone’s Influence in the Gaming Industry

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Facetag ($0.99)

Version 1.0

Do you love taking photos of your friends and adding funny captions to them? Wouldn’t you love to be able to do this on the fly and then share your funny additions with your friends and family? If so then you may enjoy FaceTag, developed by MightyExcellentPosse.

This app is quite simple but can be quite addictive. Take a photo, add a caption, and share it. Easy enough? Let’s take a peek ..

As with most apps that work with your camera feature, when you initially open the app it prompts you to either take a new photo or retrieve one from your library.

At any time, if you need to refer to the instructions, simply hit the ? at the bottom.

After making your photo selection it takes you to the screen where you can add your caption bubble and text. By clicking the icons in the bottom center of the screen it will take you to the bubble chooser screen, where you can decide the shape of your new caption.

After picking out the shape you’ll then pick out which way the leading part of the bubble points. After that it will temporarily place the bubble on your photo, after which you can drag and resize it to your liking.

Double clicking the bubble allows you to add text. Clicking the “T” icon at the bottom right gives you the option to change the font type that you are using. Once you’ve added your caption simply hit the check mark to move forward in the app.

Once you’ve finished adding the caption you now have a few options as to what to do next .. Email it, send it as a text message, share it on Facebook, or Tweet it to Twitter.

Simply enough!

If you are looking for something that is nicely presented, simple to use, and gives you chances for tweaking, then you may enjoy using FaceTag. While I wish it had the option to save your photos to your iPhone, all in all I think this is a fun app that will give people hours of laughs!

- Chris G

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If you have any questions, or are unsure how to redeem promo codes, please check out the following link on Apple’s website! — http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1917

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© 2010, iPhone and iPad app reviews. All rights reserved. An expedite fee may have been paid for some reviews. We work diligently to ensure that this does not affect the content of the review and strive to keep the journalistic integrity intact. All reviews are the personal opinion of the reviewer.

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Price: Free   Score: 6/10   By A. Papachristos

For over 40 years, the Quarks and Tulans have been at war and you have just been recruited as a gunner whose mission, should you choose to accept it, is to use the Quark’s cannons to destroy the Tulan barricades and save the devastated planet.

The premise of BoxBattle Lite by MaxNick puts users in the middle of this fictitious war, requiring them to utilize the Quarks’ artillery to destroy as many green boxes as possible, while avoiding red boxes and conserving ammunition at the same time.  Users must develop their own strategies for demolishing the barricades, completing the specific level’s goal, all while using the least amount of ammunition possible, for running out will cause you to have to repeat the process because cannonballs are limited and will cost you points in the long run.

Upon startup, users are asked if they would like to enable OpenFeint, an Internet leaderboard that allows you to compare your scores to the scores of other players from all over the world.  You will also be able to track your own personal statistics within BoxBattle Lite in order to review your progress at any time.  After this, users will then have free reign of this application’s Lite version, which provides 12 free levels to give users a taste of what BoxBattle has to offer.  (Those who love what they say can simply upgrade to the paid version within the application, providing over 120 new levels of game play.)

In general, BoxBattle Lite offers a great sampling of what the full, paid version promises.  As you proceed, you can unlock achievements, receive medals and weapons upgrades, accumulating points along the way that not only help you advance levels, but also help you on your journey toward the ultimate rank – First Cannoneer of the Quark Empire.

Though the concept is simple, BoxBattle Lite provides not only a comprehensive ‘Help’ section, but users will also find a guide right within the ‘Help’ portion that provides a visual aid as to how users should maneuver their weapons, what each icon means and the different types of ammunition available.

However, when it comes to playing games on a small device, such as the iPhone or iPod Touch, the tiny screen does not lend itself well to precision and patience.  With BoxBattle Lite, users must develop a careful technique, combining aim and force on a playing field that is extremely sensitive to the touch.  To move the cannon up and down on its track, users should use two fingers to drag the weapon.  Then, to shoot, users use one finger to aim at the boxes, pulling back further and further to increase the force of the cannonball.  But, as one pulls back, the cannon’s touch sensitivity causes the aim to shift, leaving your cannonball falling in the wrong direction, completely missing your target.  This leads to wasted ammunition, making even Level One a tricky task for the impatient or unskilled.

With such a small screen, even users with the smallest fingers will find this sensitivity and need for precision a challenge all on its own.  And, assuming that Level One is supposed to represent the easiest level difficulty of them all, perhaps users should be greeted with a slightly less daunting test in order to draw them in quicker, because anyone who becomes discouraged after the first level will surely never make it through the 12 free levels, longing for the paid version and more game play.

For a YouTube video demonstration of what BoxBattle has to offer, click here.

BoxBattle requires iPhone OS 3.0 or later and is compatible with iPhone and iPod Touch. A small fee was paid by the developer to speed up the publication of this review.

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The art of stop motion is a filming technique that’s been around since the late 1800s and popularized in the swinging 1960s. It’s created by photographing every movement a character or prop makes, then stitching them together in rapid succession. Although, it’s quite complicated and therefore mainly left to the pros. Now, you can make your own stop motion film easily with just your iPhone and StopMotion Recorder.

The app is basic; just point and click. When you first go into the app, the camera will be deployed. The principal is easy – pose your characters and touch the screen to take pictures. A nifty feature to make sure you line up each shot from one to another is a shadow of the previous picture (aka onion skin), so there will be no unwanted differences once you put the frames together.

Once finished, you get a chance to review all the frames, cut ones you don’t want and set the speed of your movie (how many frames you want to play per second) and that’s it! A stop motion movie in minutes. The list of your finished movies can be accessed any time from within the app.

There are lots of options to chose from for sharing for creations; send to Twitter using YFrog or TwitVid, mail it or upload it to Flickr or YouTube. Interestingly, if you want it in your camera roll, you have to export it from the app first. It would be much better if the movie was automatically added to the camera roll, like many other picture and movie apps do. There is a settings menu, but nothing there is too complicated and instead just invites you to try different effects on your pictures.

The photo quality of the movie is also only as good as the iPhone camera. Don’t expect to have a very high quality movie unless you are in natural sunlight. Though the app does try to focus each frame as you take it, giving each frame a much crisper look. Due to the quality restrictions of the camera, StopMotion Recorder might be a little too irritating for those without patience or a steady hand.

One very strange detail is the lack of auto-rotation when taking the photos. If you hold the iphone on its side to make the most of the screen, then you might end up with an upside down or sideways movie that needs editing once uploaded to a computer, defeating the object slightly.

Anyone looking for a bit of fun should give StopMotion Recorder a go, as it’s bound to bring hours of entertainment to an individual or a group. The creativity is pretty much boundless, only tampered slightly by the lack of rotation and camera quality. For just $0.99, this is an absolute steal.

[ StopMotion Recorder Review is a post from 148Apps ]

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iPhone Features – The Possibilities are Endless. One of the explanations of its massive popularity is the huge number of features and capabilities the iPhone comes with. As you probably know it already, the purchase of an iPhone is quite an expensive venture and if you want to go for the best version, you will have to shell out several hundred pounds. This is why it is so important to get an insurance for your iPhone – you will get full coverage of your device should it get stolen or occur some kind of accidental damage. They will also provide worldwide coverage so your iPhone will be insured no matter where you will be traveling.

The iPhone has the capabilities of many separate devices in one elegant case. Among countless other things, you can surf on the Internet, listen to music, watch a movie or TV shows, snap pictures, access maps, manage your emails, record video and audio and much more. Because of its incredible versatility, thousands of people are sieging the stores to get a hold of one everyday. Every time a newer model is released, most of the stock is sold out within only a few days.

The iPhone has made an enormous impact on the whole cellphone industry. Instead of only being able to simply make standard phone calls, it is possible to combine many different tasks parallel thus the iPhone is very much like a small computer in the palm of your hand. And this is primarily why the iPhone is so pricey, which makes it a wise decision to purchase insurance for your iPhone, in order to ensure the protection of your small investment.

By insuring your iPhone, you will get a replacement in no time in case your iPhone gets stolen or undergoes accidental damage. That means if any kind of accident or mishap occurs, like it gets dropped to the ground or it sustains water damage, you will not need to worry about shelling out the money again for a new iPhone. You will only have to quickly process a claim so that they can provide your replacement in no time at all.

An iPhone insurance is very affordable, you only have to pay a few pounds a month to maintain it. Nowadays this means less than a cup of coffee. When having a claim, you will only be asked for a small excess fee and they will have your iPhone replaced in no time. You will avoid the inconvenience of not having a mobile phone for weeks or even months. This means that you won’t have to interrupt your daily tasks and you will remain connected with your family and friends. Having an iPhone insurance is clearly the most sensible and wisest decision that you can make to protect yourself and your small investment.

Related posts:

1. Five Features that Make iPhone 3GS Most Prevailing
2. Understanding the Rationale behind iPhone Unlocking

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Price: $.99   Score: 6/10   By A. Papachristos

As technology continues to advance, life gets more and more complicated.  The programs and gadgets designed to lighten our load have become a burden themselves, causing the general public to have to constantly learn new methods and advance at the same rapid pace.  But then there are programs – in this case, applications – that attempt to ease this problem by combining everything in hopes of making the all-in-one concept seem simple and more enticing to the crowd.

Yet, when it comes to social networking, we fail to realize that half the tasks we take on are completely unnecessary.  However, Pinch – iMessenger, iContacts & iLocation Sense by Affle Pte Ltd takes a plethora of these pointless actions and combines them into a single application that may or may not put your mind into overdrive depending on how much information you can take in at one time.

While Pinch most definitely does a decent job of combining multiple types of social networking and mobile communication into one application, one also has to account for the fact that such an application will only work to the fullest extent if all your friends are using the app as well.  Luckily, Pinch features cross platforms messaging support, meaning iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, Blackberry, Android, Symbian, Windows Mobile, Web and Facebook users can access the same services, slightly increasing your chances of finding friends who use the application.  Otherwise, once you create your account, be prepared to send a lot of invitations.

Upon startup, all users will first need to access the Profile tab, which will allow existing users to log in and new users to register.  While users can either create a new account or sign in using their Facebook account, all will have to provide their mobile telephone number and email address in order to proceed.  Pinch promises that such information is confidential and used to simply provide users with their messages and archived information, for Pinch offers free unlimited storage of your message history.

With the iMessenger component, Pinch hopes to redefine texting by ridding users of roaming or data charges.  Their idea is to eliminate the need to pay for SMS and MMS messaging and data by taking advantage of your device’s Wi-Fi capabilities.  Users can also customize their messaging layout with personalized themes and wallpapers available under Preferences.  To compile all your contacts in one place, the iContacts portion works to organize and auto-discover your friends from your phone’s contact list, Twitter and Facebook (assuming you give Pinch the permission to connect to your accounts).

However, the most unnecessary (and unsafe) aspect of Pinch would have to be the iLocation Sense aspect.  Acting as a built-in stalking system, more or less, iLocation will find fellow Pinch friends and users nearby, while also sharing your location and tracking your personal journey with directions and miles traveled.  To encourage check-ins, points are awarded every time you inform the world of your location.  These points can then be used in Pinch’s leaderboard contests, including their current iPad giveaways.  Of course, I do know that users can control who sees their location, but encouraging such forms of social networking is irresponsible considering the potential dangers sharing such information may lead to when in the wrong hands.

But, if you are truly into such forms of social networking, then you best get to work on inviting all your friends (anyone with a Smartphone, that is) so they can join you on your journey to make Pinch semi-practical in a world run by Facebook, Twitter, Four-square and all those other social networking sites that have come to control our daily activities already.

Pinch requires iPhone OS 3.0 or later and is compatible with iPhone and iPod Touch.  A small expedite fee was paid by the developer to speed up the publication of this review.

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In this weekly feature, FingerGaming rounds up the top-grossing iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad applications, as current that day on the iTunes App Store. This week’s top iPhone titles are:

1. Angry Birds ($0.99)
2. Risk: The Official Game ($4.99)
3. Bejeweled 2 ($2.99)
4. Tetris ($2.99)
5. Doodle Jump ($0.99)
6. The Sims 3 ($4.99)
7. Let’s Golf 2 ($4.99)
8. Plants vs. Zombies ($2.99)
9. Modern Combat: Sandstorm ($2.99)
10. Fruit Ninja ($0.99)

EA’s official iPhone adaptation of the strategy board game Risk takes second place in today’s top-grossing games chart, while Clickgamer’s Angry Birds once again keeps the top spot.

Bejeweled 2, Tetris, and Doodle Jump continue to see impressive daily sales, meanwhile, as Gameloft’s Let’s Golf 2 premieres behind a discounted The Sims 3 at seventh place.

Plants vs. Zombies, Fruit Ninja, and a price-dropped Modern Combat: Sandstorm finish up today’s sales results, pushing the recent chart hits Wheel of Fortune Platinum, Street Fighter IV, and Star Wars: Battle for Hoth out of the top ten.

Here are this week’s top-grossing iPad applications:

1. Scrabble for iPad ($9.99)
2. Angry Birds HD ($4.99)
3. Plants vs. Zombies HD ($9.99)
4. Real Racing HD ($9.99)
5. Shrek Kart HD ($0.99)
6. Tap Fish (Free)
7. Need for Speed Shift for iPad ($12.99)
8. Zombie Farm (Free)
9. Modern Conflict HD ($1.99)
10. Osmos ($4.99)

EA’s Scrabble surges to the top of the iPad games chart this week, after previously finishing sixth in weekly sales. Angry Birds HD drops to second place, as Plants vs. Zombies HD follows at third.

Real Racing HD also sees a boost in popularity this week, finishing at fourth after settling for tenth place last week. Former chart champion Osmos falls to tenth place in today’s sales results, meanwhile, as recent favorites like Fruit Ninja HD, Monkey Island 2 Special Edition, and Spider: Bryce Manor HD disappear from the top ten entirely.

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New updates to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act state that circumventing copyright security locks on game software and handsets like iPhone is legal — but there are important stipulations.

The U.S. Copyright Office on Monday detailed exemptions from technological circumvention laws that are meant to protect digital copyrighted work. The Librarian of Congress revisits copyright law every three years to review possible classes of work that are recommended for exemption.

Among the new exemptions, according to the Librarian of Congress, are “Video games accessible on personal computers and protected by technological protection measures that control access to lawfully obtained works, when circumvention is accomplished solely for the purpose of good faith testing for, investigating, or correcting security flaws or vulnerabilities.”

One stipulation is that the information derived from the security testing is used “primarily to promote the security of the owner or operator of a computer, computer system, or computer network.”

Perhaps more importantly to copyright holders, “The information derived from the security testing [must be] used or maintained in a manner that does not facilitate copyright infringement or a violation of applicable law.”

The Librarian of Congress also said that computer programs used to circumvent security locks in wireless telephone handsets are also exempt from DMCA prohibitions, as long as the circumvention “is accomplished for the sole purpose of enabling interoperability of such applications, when they have been lawfully obtained, with computer programs on the telephone handset.”

This opens up the legality of running applications not approved by Apple — such as games — to run on “jailbreak” iPhones that have had their security locks disengaged (jailbreaking still voids the warranty). But all other copyright laws apply, so it’s still illegal to run pirated apps on a jailbreak iPhone. Apple, which can still update wireless device firmware to reject unauthorized apps, previously tried disputing the legality of jailbreaking, saying it violates company copyrights.

Another exemption also said it is legal to use a computer program to circumvent security locks in order to connect to a wireless network, as long as the network operator authorizes that access.

Other new circumvention exemptions include short portions of movies on DVD as long as the content obtained through digital circumvention are used for educational purposes by schools, documentary filmmaking and noncommercial videos.

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BFBC2 Guide – Battlefield Bad Company 2 ($2.99)

Version 1.3.0

Are you a fan of Battlefield Bad Company 2? Do you always find yourself running out to grab the latest game guide to make the most of your experience? If so, you may be able to save yourself the trip by picking up this app from Will Rodgers. This is not just a game guide, it’s so much more!

As described on the iTunes site, the game guide part of this app is just one of many features that you get with this app.

For $2.99 you get ..

- The “Ultimate Battlefield: Bad Company 2 Multiplayer Strategy Guide” written by Chris Jensen. This guide is nicely laid out and easy to follow. It has a Table of Contents so you can jump to what you care about reading. In addition, once you’ve picked your reading spot you can easily just keep going on towards the next discussion topic.

- Kit Creation. In this section you can add in your own kits, and even give them names so you can refer back to them.

- Popular Kits. This will require an active wifi connection as it syncs to the internet and pulls a listing of the most popular kits. They are broken down by Assault, Engineer, Medic, and Recon.

- Weapon Info (with damage charts) and a brief summary of each weapon listed. There is also a handy button so that you can easily compare weapons to each other.

- Zoomable maps, which have great detail to them. They show both a general overview layout, rush (when applicable), and also the conquest path (when applicable).

- Gadgets, Specs, and Vehicles, which give a listing of each, a photo, and a brief description.
- Achievements
- Trophies
- Pins

- Insignias

As you can see from all of the graphics above, the developer has spent a lot of time making this guide really in-depth and high quality. When it helps the purpose you will find graphics and charts and otherwise there is always an easy to read description or summary. This guide is well laid out, feature packed, and very easy to pick up and follow.

If you enjoy this game and want to make the most out of your experience, I recommend giving this app a look. It’s currently available in the App Store so follow the link below and pick up your copy today!

- Chris G

© 2010, iPhone and iPad app reviews. All rights reserved. An expedite fee may have been paid for some reviews. We work diligently to ensure that this does not affect the content of the review and strive to keep the journalistic integrity intact. All reviews are the personal opinion of the reviewer.

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Price: $2.99   Score: 9/10    By A. Papachristos

Whether you frequent your local supermarket, the small corner store down the street, or your favorite stand at the Farmer’s Market, picking the proper produce can cause quite the predicament.  Everyone has his or her own methods of picking out the ripest melon or the freshest lettuce, but are they truly the right way to find fruits and vegetables that will taste great and stay fresh until they make it to your table?

With Produce Pal by Silton Solutions LLC constantly at hand, shoppers need not fear this conundrum ever again.  Produce Pal features a database of over 70 different types of fruits and vegetables, each with its own set of criteria for what makes the product ideal.  Plus, users are not only provided with instructions on how to pick their produce, but also on how to store their items once they get home.

When starting up Produce Pal, simply choose the category you are interested by using the ‘Fruits’ and ‘Vegetables’ tabs in the navigation bar at the bottom of the screen.  Each category is alphabetized, from Apple to Watermelon and Artichoke to Zucchini, making it easy to find the correct item quickly.  For each product, Produce Pal offers a description of what to look for when buying the item, how to store the item at home, the product’s nutritional value, and a few fun facts that may impress your friends and guests.

Though Produce Pal presents a simple, useful concept with an equally simple and useful application, users truly need nothing more than what this minimalist application offers.  All the necessary information is laid out right in front of you in a clear, concise manner, making it an easily accessible tool that will in fact help you save money in the long run simply by providing tips on how to keep your produce fresher longer.

Plus, if you happen to discover a fruit or vegetable that is not already part of the database, simply contact Silton Solutions LLC and they will add the item in their next update.  You can access their website right within the application itself, on the second page as you swipe through their ‘About’ tab.  Here, users can also peruse a list of other apps by Silton Solutions LLC as they continue to swipe through the pages of the ‘About’ tab., including Silly Stories, After Shock, and Chalk A Lot.

So get ready to start munching because for anyone who loves fruits and vegetables, loves eating healthy, and loves saving money (and who doesn’t?), Produce Pal will surely become your new grocery-shopping buddy.

Produce Pal requires iPhone OS 3.0 or later and is compatible with iPhone and iPod Touch. A small expedite fee was paid by the developers of this app to speed up the publication of this review.

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Every week, FingerGaming rounds up the most popular paid and free iPhone and iPod Touch applications, as current that day on the iTunes App Store. This week’s top paid titles are:

1. Angry Birds ($0.99)
2. Doodle Jump ($0.99)
3. Fruit Ninja ($0.99)
4. AirAttack ($0.99)
5. Modern Combat: Sandstorm ($2.99)
6. Skee-Ball ($0.99)
7. Risk: The Official Game ($4.99)
8. Bejeweled 2 ($2.99)
9. All-in-1 Gamebox ($0.99)
10. FIFA World Cup ($0.99)

After taking second place last week, Sony’s Wheel of Fortune Platinum drops out of today’s charts after returning to full price. Helsing’s Fire and Star Wars: Battle for Hoth have also disappeared from the charts after recent promising debuts.

Clickgamer’s Angry Birds, Lima Sky’s Doodle Jump, and Halfbrick’s Fruit Ninja lead as today’s top-selling iPhone games, as the 99-cent shoot-’em-up AirAttack outsells Gameloft’s price-dropped Modern Combat: Sandstorm in its premiere week.

EA’s Risk: The Official Game also makes an impressive chart debut this week, while Triniti’s app compilation All-in-1 Gamebox ranks between PopCap’s Bejeweled 2 and a discounted FIFA World Cup at ninth place.

Here are this week’s top free applications:

1. Prison Escape
2. Bubble Explode
3. Castle Smasher
4. Tap Resort Party
5. Cat Physics
6. Eliminate: GunRange Free
7. Need for Speed Shift Free
8. Red Ball 2
9. Sandwich Maker Free
10. Sudoku 2

While Triniti’s Jailbreaker emerged as a popular download last week, the similarly-themed Prison Escape premieres as today’s top free game app. Spooky House Studios’ new puzzler Bubble Explode ranks in at second place, as Donut Games’ Castle Smasher claims third in its premiere week.

Ngmoco’s formerly iPhone 4-exclusive Eliminate: GunRange rushes up the charts after a recent update adding compatibility for all iOS devices, while a new demo version of EA’s popular racer Need for Speed Shift lands above Red Ball 2 and Sandwich Maker Free at seventh place.

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Guide for FrontierVille (unofficial) ($1.99)

Version 1.0

Are you a FrontierVille addict? Looking for a great game guide to make the most of your experience? If so then you may be interested in Guide for FrontierVille (unofficial) which is a new addition to the App Store. Developed by Will Rodgers this guide may have everything you are looking for. Let’s check it out..

First of all, game guides have always been a popular desire for gaming addicts. These guys have gone through the program, inch by inch, and have conveniently package every tip and recommendation into the app for you, saving you all kinds of time in the process!

When you initially open the app it starts at the Table of Contents. You can immediately scroll down to see that this app is packed with lots of information. It breaks it down by “Parts” and then subsections under that. As an example Part IV is called “Quests” and a couple of the many subsections are called “Make Medicinal Tea” and “Fill the Pockets.”

This app is nice is a few ways. One is that you can scan the Table of Contents and go to exactly what you want to read about. The other is that when you finishing reading that section, and decide to read more, all you do is scroll down and continue. You don’t have to go back to the Menu and click on the next section. That is very convenient in my opinion.

As far as usability of the app it is nicely laid out, includes tables and graphics when they are beneficial, and it’s very well written. And .. it beats sitting there with a book in your lap!!

All in all, if you are one of the many (MANY) who are currently addicted to FrontierVille, and want to make the most out of your adventure, then I suggest you give this app a good look. It’s very well organized, has the right amount of detail so that you’re not overwhelmed or wanting for more, and will only improve your FrontierVille experience!

Guide for FrontierVille is available in the App Store now, so head over and grab your copy today!

- Chris G

© 2010, iPhone and iPad app reviews. All rights reserved. An expedite fee may have been paid for some reviews. We work diligently to ensure that this does not affect the content of the review and strive to keep the journalistic integrity intact. All reviews are the personal opinion of the reviewer.

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Price: $2.99   Score: 9/10   By M. Schusterman

There are fast, mindless games aplenty for the iPhone, so much so that when I finally do get a new game that requires a little more thought, takes a little more time, I get frustrated. Sad, really, as when it comes to other non-iPhone games I like one that makes me use my brain a bit.

So my first few minutes with Mummy Panic, designed by Christopher Sisk, I tapped my foot impatiently when the actual concept didn’t make itself immediately clear. An hour an a half later, I hadn’t moved. This was after three cups of coffee, too, so my refusal to get up and abandon the game is a significant testimony to its addictiveness.

I recommend watching the short video tutorial in the app before playing, as you might find yourself staring dumbly at the screen once game play starts otherwise. This is a maze game; you have several mummies, anywhere from three to dozens, scattered on different parts of the screen and facing different directions. In the top right corner, you’re given one or more arrows pointing in a specific direction. Tap any spot on the grid to place the arrow and control the direction the mummies move.

The mummies automatically begin moving whichever direction they’re facing, and when they hit a wall or an obstacle they turn right. Your goal in Mummy Panic is to get the mummies into a crate; not the easiest of tasks when you’ve got one measly down arrow to work with. Impatient gamers be warned; much of this game requires staring at the screen, plotting, then you get one tap before you sit back and see if the mummies all make it in.

The waiting was annoying until I realized that tilting the iPhone away from me sped up their speed – a thoughtful feature I loved. The graphics are quite good, and don’t let the first two levels fool you…it gets complicated, and there’s over fifty of them. Things get more interesting when explorers come into play – they move like the mummies and respond to your arrows, and running into one will do your mummies in.

My only small complaint with Mummy Panic is that sometimes, with new graphics and objects on each level, it’s difficult to guess what the mummies with pass through, what will make them change direction, and what will kill them (or whatever the version of “kill” is for a mummy). Other than that, I enjoyed this game and plan on getting back to it as soon as I finish this review. That last level was really getting to me.

Mummy Panic requires iPhone OS 4.0 or later and is compatible with the iPhone and iPod Touch. A small expedite fee was paid by the developer to speed up the publication of this review.

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Price: $1.99   Score: 10/10   By M. Schusterman

The quantity of exercise apps out there is plentiful, the quality often poor. Most often, the cause for a frustrating exercise app experience is either shoddy video work or frustratingly slow load times.

However, Abtastic delivers exactly what it promises; 15 short videos with easy to follow instructions on different ab-focused exercises. Designed by 2Dogs.com, this app gets right to the point. Open it up to find the menu with the 15 videos, each with a name and a picture so you can see the move in action. Users should take note that about half of the videos use either a bench, hanging handles or an exercise ball, while the other half require no equipment.

The quality of the videos is as good as they promise – each session (about half a minute long) is shot at multiple angles, and the voiceover instruction is clear and easy to understand. Once the app is downloaded, there’s zero wait time. Tap the exercise in the main menu to see the name and a short description, which explains what part of your abs the exercise targets, as well as how many sets and reps you should perform per session. Tap again to start the video.

What I like about each video is that they waste no time in getting down to the exercise. The instructor is already in position and begins performing the routine, with the narrator explaining how to position yourself and what to focus on while you move. For those looking for a lot of guidance, this app doesn’t design a personalized ab workout for you – it provides you with the tools you need to create your own.

Good exercise videos are fairly expensive. For two dollars, you’re getting about eight solid minutes of high quality, ab-focused instruction and video – not a bad deal for those serious about their workout apps.

Abtastic requires iPhone OS 3.1.3 or later and is compatible with iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch. A small expedite fee was paid by the developer to speed up the publication of this review.

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