Review

Cover your iPad with a professionally stylish felt sleeve

Jim Gresham ∙ December 6, 2014

Living a conflicted life, I am an iPhone nudist but also a hardware reviewer for iDB. As you can imagine, the struggle comes when reviewing accessories that cause the user to obfuscate the design and detail of an Apple iOS device with unnecessary appendages. I do not like bulky cases, even if their primary function is protection. I do not even like screen protectors because it stands between my finger and the glass.

When Inatek approached me about a sleeve, I jumped at the option. Sleeves are one of my favorite accessory genres because they allow the device to be used naked, while still providing protection for travel and day-to-day carry. The Inatek TPB-IM sleeve fits the bill.

Bounce On Back review: roll along with this tilting platformer

Lory Gil ∙ Updated February 12, 2018

I’ll be the first to admit that I am not the biggest fan of tilt-based games. I am of the opinion that video games started out as stationary cabinets and we are messing with the formula when we add different control mechanisms.

Bounce On Back is a tilt-based platformer game, but it is way more fun than I thought it would be. Plus, if you really hate the controls, you can opt for a D-pad instead. We’ve got a complete game review of Bounce on Back for you today.

Dwelp review: try wrapping your head around this puzzle game

Lory Gil ∙ December 4, 2014

Puzzle games are a big hit around here. We love to put our brains through daily workouts to keep our minds fresh and strong. That’s why, whenever there is a new submission to the genre, we jump at the chance to check it out.

Dwelp is a puzzle game that requires you to pay attention to future steps. Not unlike chess, what you do next will have an affect on what can be done in the future. We’ve got a full game review of Dwelp for you below.

Perfectly cradle iPhone in leather with Nodus Access case

Jim Gresham ∙ Updated April 18, 2018

It is rare to find a case I adore. Most of my hesitation stems from being an iPhone nudist, which I mention in most of my articles. Further complicating matters is my disdain for overly complicated designs or cases that interfere with the look and feel of iOS devices.

Many case companies get most things right. The protection level is perfect or the look and feel is spot on. Everyone does their thing. However, running into my third year of accessory reviews, most of the marketed cases are boring to me. In fact, my hardware review articles are quite infrequent due to the lack of truly new cases. Many companies are in their third or fourth iteration of the exact same case, merely updated for the newest iPhone form factor.

Standing in stark contrast to the mundane daily cases, Nodus introduced me to their Access collection. Even before holding the product, I thought to myself, here is a company that is doing it all exactly right. Shortly thereafter, I pillaged my mailbox looking for the iPhone 6 Plus Access case.

Declutter your life with the NeatConnect cloud scanner

Jim Gresham ∙ Updated October 14, 2018

In a recent attempt to go paperless, inspired by our own Jeff Benjamin, I began the search for a solid document scanner about this time last year. Thankfully, December is the month before CES and I hunted for a solution at the world's largest end-user computer conference.

Finding the right scanner was not particularly important, because I had no idea what should accompany a scanner purchase. What features does one need when it comes to scanning? Other than using primitive scanners back in college or a full blown office scanner, there is no personal benchmark for home-use that I could rely upon. In my quest through confusion, I stumbled upon the Neat team members, who promised a scanning option that did not require tethering to a computer. The NeatConnect is a powerful desktop tool without the requirement of annoying USB cables.

FRAMED review: rewrite the plot to this espionage story

Lory Gil ∙ November 26, 2014

I love when new games come out that completely defy their genres. It's not that I don’t enjoy traditional games, but titles that break from the norm are bold, brave, and refreshing.

FRAMED is one of those games that is unique enough to feel like a whole new genre, but work within the context of familiarity so as not to scare you away. We’ve got a full game review of FRAMED for you today.

Space Expedition: Classic Adventure is a dig into the past

Lory Gil ∙ November 24, 2014

For me, there really is nothing better than a good, old-fashion side-scrolling platformer. As a kid, those were the types of games that first got me into spending all of my quarters at the local arcade. Although gaming technology has improved and the mechanics have gotten more advanced, I still love the 2-D world of my past.

Space Expedition: Classic Adventure is just that, a classic adventure. As a lone astronaut on a research space station, players must uncover the events that led to its abandonment. We’ve got a full game review of Space Expedition for you right now.

Space Age: A Cosmic Adventure: an homage to traditional adventure games of 20 years ago

Lory Gil ∙ November 20, 2014

In the 1990s, point-and-click adventure games were really hitting their stride on desktop computers. It may have been the only time when there was a chance that PC gaming had the potential to overtake console gaming in popularity. Now mobile gaming is filling that spot.

Space Age: A Cosmic Adventure is a science fiction set quest in the 1970s about a group of space travelers that land on an alien planet. Your job is to help this story unfold by completing missions. We’ve got an in-depth game review of Space Age for your reading pleasure today.

Icewind Dale: Enhanced Edition review

Lory Gil ∙ November 18, 2014

Icewind Dale came out 14 years ago on Windows computers. In 2000, I still hadn’t even begun playing Dungeons & Dragons on a regular basis, so this title slipped past my view for many years.

Icewind Dale: Enhanced Edition recently launched on iOS and it features all of the familiar settings of the Forgotten Realms, plus includes a few new spells, text options and other enhancements that bring the game to life in the mobile arena. We’ve got a hands-on game review of Icewind Dale for you today.

AppHeads: an upcoming tweak that reinvents iOS multitasking

Timothy Reavis ∙ Updated April 18, 2018

iOS multitasking remained relatively untouched for the first several years of its existence, and although iOS 7 revamped its UI, it still maintained the core idea of using one app at a time. AppHeads is an upcoming jailbreak tweak that will reinvent iOS multitasking for some and, at the very least, greatly enhance it for others.

If you're familiar with Facebook Messenger, you probably already have an idea of what the interface of AppHeads will look like. It uses the same round icons as Facebook Messenger, but instead of juggling conversation threads and friends' faces, AppHeads uses these bubbles to manage running applications. You can watch this tweak in action in the video below.

A Mechanical Story review: get the gears spinning to solve these puzzles

Lory Gil ∙ Updated January 30, 2018

I don’t have a lot of experience with wrenches, gears, cogs, and other mechanical doohickeys. I’ve never been one to simply take apart my electronic devices to see how they work. I do, however, have a lot of experience with puzzle solving games.

A Mechanical Story is nothing more than a puzzle game, but it is set in the world of engineering workings. I was intimidated at first, seeing all of those spinning gears. But in the end, it is simply a fun puzzle game and nothing to be afraid of. We’ve got a game review of A Mechanical Story for you today.

Jump your way out of the path of evil in Avoid It

Lory Gil ∙ Updated February 12, 2018

Every once in a while a game comes along that doesn’t seem to fit into any category, but manages to hold its own against the most popular of genres. A game doesn’t have to be familiar to be good.

Avoid it is one of those games that seems to fit into multiple categories, but can’t really be likened to anything I’ve ever played before. It is both familiar, and unique at the same time. Check out my game review of Avoid It below.