Apps

Day 5 of Apple’s 12 Days of Gifts: the movie Hugo

We are now on day 5 of the big 12 Days of Gifts event, meaning Apple has removed the Toca House game and has posted a new free item for download. Today’s gift is the award-winning historical adventure drama Hugo.

Based on Brian Selznick's novel 'The Invention of Hugo Cabret,' and directed by the legendary Martin Scorsese, Hugo tells the story of a 12-year-old boy living in the walls of the Paris Gare Montparnasse railway station...

Day 4 of Apple’s 12 Days of Gifts: Toca House game for kids

We are now on day 4 of Apple’s 12 Days of Gifts event, meaning Apple has removed the Lonely Planet iBook and has posted a new free item for download. Today’s gift is a popular educational game for children called Toca House.

Parents love Toca House because it allows their children (intended for ages 2-6) to virtually participate in everyday household chores like doing the dishes, ironing, and planting flowers in the garden through various mini-games...

Apps of the week: Waterlogue, Wake for iPad, Writer Pro, and more…

Now that Christmas is over, the fun begins. I love thinking about how exciting it must be for new iPhone and iPad owners. I still remember what it was like when I downloaded my first apps. It’s like Christmas is happening all over again, every day.

If you are a brand new iPhone owner or just looking for something to keep you occupied this weekend, we have a list of apps and games that we think you will enjoy…

Day 3 of Apple’s 12 Days of Gifts: ‘Lonely Planet’s Best in Travel 2014’ iBook

We are now on day 3 of Apple’s 12 Days of Gifts event, meaning Apple has removed Tiny Thief and has posted a new free item for download. Today's gift is an iBook called "Lonely Planet's Best in Travel 2014."

For those unfamiliar with Lonely Planet, it's one of the world’s leading travel guide publishers with guidebooks to almost every destination on the planet. And in this iBook, it highlights 10 of its favorite spots...

The 10 best news apps of 2013

How did the world get its news before the Internet was around? When I was a kid, you didn’t know about what was happening across the globe until 5:00. Now, news is reported within minutes of events. With the proliferation of mobile devices, people can even read breaking news from anywhere, anytime.

The writers at iDownloadBlog have come up with a list of what they think are the 10 best news apps of 2013. Check out our favorites and then vote for the one you like best to be added to our Best Apps of 2013 list…

Nokia pulls Here Maps because iOS 7 changes ‘harm user experience’

Nokia's long-standing mapping service rebranded as Here got announced in November 2012, with the native iPhone and iPad application arriving soon after with maps for around 200 countries, voice-guided walking navigation, public transportation directions and offline capability.

It was a nice little app that Nokia hoped would effectively fill the void in the App Store at the height of the iOS Mapsgate controversy.

Then, Google released its revamped standalone Maps for iPhone and spoiled the party for Nokia as its offering quickly tanked in App Store rankings. On Thursday, the embattled Finnish company has removed the Here application from the App Store, with a company spokesperson firing a potshot at Apple's iOS 7 in a written statement...

CTIA launches Know My App web tool detailing mobile app data usage

The App Store hosts a myriad of utilities to measure your favorite app’s cellular data usage after downloading, ranging from DataMan Next to Apple's own per-app measurements in Settings > Cellular. However, no tool existed to estimate an app’s data usage before downloading it.

That's where a new solution called Know My App comes handy.

A website launched by CTIA on Thursday, an industry trade group that represents the international wireless telecommunications industry, Know My App features a growing list of popular mobile applications with their respective data usage broken down in several useful categories.

This lets folks on metered cellular plans educate themselves on how much data their favorite app is using when it's downloaded, at initialization, during active run time and during background time. The website also includes information about how smartphone and tablet owners can conserve data...

Once Upon a Light review: save the light of your life

I’ve tested dozens of physics-based casual games. Some of them are so hard I don’t like to play them. Others are so simple I get bored. Finding a middle ground isn’t as easy as it sounds. I guess I’m the baby bear of the app testing world.

Once Upon a Light is a pleasantly surprising casual game that requires you to think ahead to your next move, but doesn’t require precise aim or timing skills so you can enjoy a challenge without ripping your hair out from frustration…

Day 2 of Apple’s 12 Days of Gifts: free episode of ‘Once Upon a Time’ [updated]

We are now on day 2 of Apple's 12 Days of Gifts event, meaning Apple has removed the Justin Timberlake EP and has posted a new free item for download. Today's gift is an episode—the pilot episode—of ABC's hit television series: 'Once Upon a Time.'

For those who haven't seen it, it's an American fairy tale drama that takes place in the fictional town of Storybrooke, Maine, where the residents are actually fairy tale characters. It sounds odd, but it's currently the #1 non-sports show on Sunday nights.

Update: interestingly enough, it looks like Apple changed the free download item mid-day. It now shows the game Tiny Thief here in the US. Get it while you can!

Reiner Knizia’s Razzia review: let the bidding war begin

I may not have lived throught the height of the heyday of the Mafia, or even know much about the existence of family crime lords (other than what I saw in the Sopranos), but I’ve seen The Godfather enough times to know that these underground gangs want money, power, and a little bit of fame.

Razzia is an iOS app based on the board game of the same name. Players act as the head of the Family in a bid for all of the stolen goods. The player with the stuff proves to be the biggest Mafia leader around…

Apple kicks off its ’12 Days of Gifts’ event with Justin Timberlake EP

Christmas may be over now, but that doesn't mean you have to be done getting presents. Apple has kicked off its '12 Days of Gifts' event this morning with a free gift for its faithful users, and will continue to give one each day for the next week and a half.

Today's gift is the iTunes Festival EP from music superstar Justin Timberlake. The album contains 4 live performances from Apple's annual music festival this year, and is free for all users in qualifying areas who have downloaded the 12 Days of Gifts app...

The 10 best games of 2013

Games are the most popular downloads in the App Store. On any given day, games make up about 80 percent of the top 10 lists for free and paid apps. Because there are so many amazing and cool titles launched in the App Store every day, this best-of list was hard to narrow down.

After much consideration and deliberation, the writers at iDownloadBlog have come up with a list of what they think are the 10 best games of 2013. Check out our favorites and then vote for the one you like best to be added to our Best Apps of 2013 list…