New Apps & Games

Traktor DJ makes the leap from desktop to iPad

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 21, 2013

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ScjJiGYawuM

German developer Native Instruments has long been regarded as the maker of some of the finest music and DJing software on the market and today they released Traktor DJ, a pro music mixing $19.99 iPad app that complements the desktop Traktor Pro software with bi-directional content synchronization and a host of other feature.

Unlike virtually all the other DJ apps that tap virtual turntables, Traktor DJ sports touchable waveforms and has two virtual decks, each with dedicated three-band equalizer and filter sections, including eight Traktor effects.

The app relies heavily on multitouch gestures: you can grab audio waveforms with two fingers to set a loop, perform scratches, mark cue points for live re-editing, and scrub, browse or navigate through tracks. Go past the break for additional tidbits and a hands-on video...

Another try at group photo sharing: Albumatic

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 22, 2018

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVfXuuLrnOI

A new iPhone app called Albumatic hopes to succeed where the likes of Color and Highlight have failed, to make sharing between groups of people easy and fun. It has a clean minimalistic interface that lets you easily start an album and add photos for others to see. Whenever you add a new photo, all the folks you've shared an album with get notified.

Folks nearby can join the album and add photos of their own and those that are farther away are only allowed to view the album, but not interact with the photos (likes, comments, etc.) We've seen this location-based photo sharing focus before and it didn't work out well (hint: Color), but Albumatic nonetheless bets party-goers will use it to share embarrassing cocktail snaps between themselves, Galaxy S III style...

Sony announces PlayStation App for iOS and Android

Cody Lee ∙ February 21, 2013

Sony held a pretty big press conference last night, where it talked about its next-generation gaming console. And although the PlayStation 4 itself didn't actually make an appearance, the company offered a plethora of details about the system.

And shortly after the event, it added to the day's announcements by unveiling its official PlayStation mobile application. The app, which will land on both iOS and Android, will expand PS4 gameplay by offering a 'second screen' experience...

Make room on your home screen for Sunrise Calendar (it’s that good)

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 22, 2018

https://vimeo.com/sunriseapp/ios

If the stock iOS Calendar app is too boring and you wish Fantastical, a nice iOS/OS X calendar alternative from Flexibits, had a raft of social features, don't miss out on Sunrise Calendar, a free iPhone calendar alternative by Sunrise Atelier, Inc.

The program pulls your appointments from multiple Google Calendars and Facebook Events and retrieves your weather forecast. Frankly, I was wondering why there was no app to combine weather data with my appointments, so I could make changes to upcoming meetings in case my weather forecast takes a turn for the worse. The only downside: Sunrise Calendar is made with Google Calendar users in mind (for now)...

Star Wars Pinball landing late-February

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated February 8, 2016

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOajo2uBvbE

If you can't get enough of Star Wars and have been yearning for something a bit more challenging and entertaining than Rovio's Star Wars-themed Angry Birds, here's some good news. Zen Studios Games has been hard at work putting finishing touches on their officially licensed pinball game dubbed Star Wars Pinball.

The trailer above highlights the Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back table which takes place - you guessed right - on the main deck of a Star Destroyer. Clearly inspired by the events of the film, it includes such memorable characters as Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader, plus the inevitable battles with AT-AT Walkers and Tie Fighters...

Haze: a gorgeous gesture-controlled weather app for minimalists

Cody Lee ∙ February 16, 2013

Taking a look at some of the more popular titles in the App Store—Clear, Mailbox, Tempo—it's clear that minimalism and multitouch gestures are in right now. Developers are ditching heavy graphics in favor of much simpler interfaces.

For the most part, people seem to like the new trend. And if you fall into that category, you might want to check out Haze. It's a new iPhone weather app that exudes these two qualities. It's gesture-controlled, and has a very minimal UI...

The official Kickstarter app finally hits the iPhone

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 14, 2013

Funding platform Kickstarter is great for crowd-sourcing projects traditional investors may not be keen on supporting. I mean, Kickstarters gave us the majestic Pebble E-Watch, a foldable iPhone keyboard, mounts, innovative stands and a whole bunch of accessories. We're not really sure what took it so long, but here it is: the official Kickstarter app. A free download for your iPhone and iPod touch (iPads are not supported natively), the app provides easy access to thousands of projects...

EA announces Tetris Blitz for iOS and Android, a twist on the famous puzzler

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

Hot on the heels of launching its free to play Real Racing 3 this morning on the New Zealand App Store (two weeks ahead of schedule), games publisher Electronic Arts announced a new game for iOS and Android devices, Tetris Blitz.

It's an “innovative new twist on the world famous puzzle game,” says Electronic Arts. A bite-sized, frenzied Tetris Blitz experience challenges you with a two-minute sprint to clear lines and rack up as many points as possible before time runs out.

Electronic Arts, the super publisher which in 2011 alone raked in $1 billion in digital revenue, brought the original Tetris game to the iPhone back in December 2009. The iPhone version of Tetris costs 99 cents and the iPad version is an additional three bucks...

Valentine’s Day comes early: Real Racing 3 hits New Zealand, Australia

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 13, 2013

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZ8SljDv0yw

Today is a big day for iOS gamers as Electronic Arts launches the third installment in its popular Real Racing franchise. The game was originally scheduled for February 28 release so it wasn't clear why Electronic Arts decided to post it today, but we're not complaining even though the game initially launched in the New Zealand and Australia App Store.

The good news don't end here: as promised, Real Racing 3 is a free download with some unaggressive in-app purchases, a major strategic shift for Electronic Arts which typically prices its most recent iOS games between $5 and $10.

It's a massive download: you will need to have up to two gigabytes of free space on your device to install Real Racing 3, but Electronic Arts swears "it’s worth it"...

Winston for iPhone wants to be the Siri for news

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPH2PK5WZys

I know your news reader choices on iOS are rich. There's Flipboard, Instapaper, Readability, News360, News.me and a whole lot of other lesser known apps. Winston, a new software by a Colorado-based startup, is unlike your regular news client. Instead of overwhelming you with an endless stream of updates, Winston presents you with a personable British butler which compiles a daily brief from your selected news sources and social network feeds.

It detects what's important and then reads the summaries out aloud, so you can catch up on the latest while doing something else. It's a novel approach that saves time and as such is likely to strike a chord with busy mobile users. I'm already liking Winston a lot. More tidbits right past the fold...

4chan founder releases community-based iPad app ‘DrawQuest’

Cody Lee ∙ Updated March 14, 2018

Looking around the collection of image boards known as 4chan, it's hard to believe that the same person responsible for creating that, also created the app you see above. But it's true, this is 4chan founder Chris Poole's latest project: DrawQuest.

The premise of the app is pretty simple. Users are given daily 'drawing quests,' where they are asked to complete drawings by using only the tools provided. And once they're done, they can share their drawings, view others' artwork and more...

Tamagotchi attempts comeback in upcoming iOS app

Cody Lee ∙ Updated June 25, 2017

Unless you've been living under a rock for the past 10 years, chances are you know what a Tamagotchi is. The digital-pet-on-a-keychain was released by video game-maker Bandai in 1996, and has since sold more than 76 million units.

The fad, however, like an unfed digital pet, has passed away in recent years. But it looks like the popular toy is getting ready to make a comeback. Bandai has announced its upcoming title for iOS and Android called Tamagotchi L.i.f.e...