Apps

Ecoute music player receives major iOS 7 makeover, gains Last.fm scrobbling

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated February 21, 2018

Ecoute by Louka Desroziers and Julien Sagot of PixiApps used to be my fav third-party iPhone music player - MacStories editor Federico Viticci even named it his best iOS music player following its August 2012 debut.

A couple other alternative music players have been released since, most recently the gesture-based Beat and the $1.99 Panamp (formerly Couch Music Player).

This past weekend, PixiApps have piqued my interest all over again with Ecoute 2.0 for iPhone and iPod touch, a major rethinking of the software with iOS 7-optimized appearance, song scrobbling via Last.fm and more...

The Walk review: a fitness app disguised as a game

Lory Gil ∙ December 16, 2013

One of the most fun ways to get in shape came in the form of a clever fitness app disguised as a game called Zombies, Run! With it, users would follow a story that involved saving peoples lives and escaping brain eaters by sprinting and jogging while the app was running in the background.

The Walk is a very similar fitness app. Users complete a certain amount of exercise in order to unlock the next piece of the story. Only with this app, you don’t have to run and if you hate zombies, you won’t have to listen to them moaning as they chase you…

Gist intelligently summarizes your news articles

Jim Gresham ∙ Updated March 16, 2018

Many people turn to their iOS devices as a way to catch up on news and consume reading materials, keeping updated with daily happenings. Other than Twitter, there are few options to instantly give a short synopsis of a story or news blurb.

Personally, I use Flipboard, but even it utilizes the entire article. If you are pressed for time or only want the key points of an otherwise much larger article, a new app called Gist is aiming to provide only the quick details of news articles...

Yahoo Weather app updated with iPad support and more

Cody Lee ∙ December 16, 2013

Yahoo posted a significant update for its weather app this weekend, bringing the software to version 1.5. The update includes the ability to share the weather via Mail, Messages and social media, as well as iPad support.

That's right. Folks who really like the beautiful design, layout, and interactions of the iPhone Yahoo Weather app—things that made it one of the most popular weather apps of 2013—can now experience it on their tablet...

Vine updated with ability to hide revines when browsing user profiles

Cody Lee ∙ Updated October 9, 2018

Twitter's Vine app, which happens to be one of our favorite social networking apps, was updated this weekend with a handful of improvements. The new version, which is marked as 1.4.5, includes bug fixes, support for new languages and a new feature.

And that feature is a big one. After updating, Vine iPhone users will have the ability to hide revines when browsing a user's profile feed. So that means you will no longer have to scroll through countless revined videos to get to a user's self-made content...

The 10 best productivity apps of 2013

Lory Gil ∙ Updated March 17, 2019

If your New Year's resolution is to get more organized, you probably need an app to help you make your resolution come to pass. You may even need an app to help you come up with a list of resolutions to set next year.

This year was a great year for productivity apps. Since Apple announced the iOS 7 redesign, app developers pushed it into overdrive to redesign, recreate, and rework their apps. Plus, some great new titles found their way into the App store this year. The writers at iDownloadBlog have come up with a list of their favorites and below is a list of the 10 best productivity apps of 2013. Don’t forget to tell us which one is your favorite for our Best Apps of 2013 list…

Apps of the week: GTA San Andreas, The Room Two, Wisely, and more…

Lory Gil ∙ Updated October 12, 2018

Did you already get all of your holiday shopping done? Probably not. I know I haven’t, and I’m a fairly well organized person. What I should be doing this weekend is finishing up all of my holiday chores. What I will likely be doing is playing games on my iPad.

If you are waiting in line for your gift purchases, trimming the tree, or baking holiday cookies this weekend, we have a list of apps and games that you might find worth picking up…

Yelp updated with local movie listings, in-app ticket purchasing, and more

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 14, 2018

Yelp has posted a nice little update for its iOS client today. The update, which brings the app to version 7.4, sports a number of new features including movie listings and in-app movie ticket purchasing courtesy of Fandango.

Also new in the app is in-line review business photos. Yelp now shows business photos taken by Yelp users next to their review, so you can get a better idea of how popular a club is, or how delicious a particular entree was...

Biggest yet Infinity Blade III ‘Ausar Rising’ update launching next Thursday

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 27, 2019

Chair Entertainment's Infinity Blade is an elegiac masterpiece, an iOS exclusive and a system seller that showcases what's possible on Apple's iOS platform better than any other game. Unbelievable console-quality graphics, great soundtrack and atmosphere, complex weapons and upgrade system with RPG elements to keep you coming back for more all contribute to it being one of the best iPhone and iPad games money can buy.

The original game recently went free, as did the second installment which normally costs $6.99 and was yesterday named IGN's Free Game of the Month. As for Infinity Blade III (a $6.99 download for the iPhone and iPad), the substantial Soul Hunter update from a month and a half ago brought us a bunch of new items and goals and an all-new quest that includes a new location and a new enemy, the Deathless Bloodmage.

But that was just warming up as Chair has announced that the upcoming Ausar Rising update will be even bigger. Due next week, the update will let you revisit the original Infinity Blade castle and explore the origins of the Infinity Blade protagonist.

More on that, plus a teaser video, right after the break...

Stephen Hawking’s Snapshots of the Universe released for iPad

Christian Zibreg ∙ December 13, 2013

Ebook and mobile app publisher Random House Digital has released an interesting iPad education app in the App Store. Stephen Hawking’s Snapshots of the Universe, suitable for children aged 9+, uses the work and writings of Stephen Hawking, the famous English theoretical physicist, cosmologist, author and Director of Research at the Centre for Theoretical Cosmology within the University of Cambridge, to teach students the basic theories of the movement of the stars and planets.

The astrophysicist apparently had a say in the app's design as he envisioned an app that would help explain the fundamentals of space to both adults and children through fun mini-games. The interactive experience is optimized for iOS 7 with clean and streamlined graphic elements.

Available sections cover the basics of our solar system and let you spin planets in orbit, drop objects with Galileo to learn about gravity, search for black holes in the constellation of Leo, discover Einstein’s warped worldview and G-force in outer space and lots more...

Evernote gains business card scanning, Presentation mode and other goodies

Christian Zibreg ∙ December 13, 2013

Evernote for iPhone and iPad has been updated with a new Presentation mode and another feature allowing users to scan business cards using an iDevice camera and import contact data as Evernote notes, with the ability to connect contact data to LinkedIn, Facebook and your Address Book for richer results, among other enhancements. Both business card scanning and Presentation mode capabilities are however available only to paid Evernote Premium customers.

The Presentation mode supports AirPlay or HDMI video out to present your Evernote notes to an audience and comes with a 14-day complementary preview for Free users...

Cut the Rope 2 debuts next Thursday, here’s you gameplay vid and launch info

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 12, 2018

Developer ZeptoLab, based out in Russia, has seen wild success following the release of its charming puzzler, Cut the Rope, [$0.99 for iPhone, $3.99 for iPad] in the App Store three years ago.

Originally an iPhone exclusive, the game has been ported to virtually every computing platform under the Sun since its October 2010 debut.

Thus far, these games have managed to racket up nearly half a billion downloads, passing 60 million active monthly users in the first half of 2013.

After posting a teaser trailer a month ago - and having subsequently announced that a Cut the Rope sequel will be ready in time for the holidays - ZeptoLab has now made known the official release date for Cut the Rope 2: next Thursday, December 19.

And in a repeat of 2010, the game is slated to debut as an iOS exclusive, featuring 120 levels, new characters and tweaked gameplay.

Want to hear the best bit?

We have all the details, videos and screenshots to wet your appetite, just a click away...