AppCraver » Ofelia Saenz

Moo Shake shakes a tail feather — and a cow belly and a cat head

Ofelia Saenz — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 20:30:36 +0000

Moo Shake - A martial arts zebra, a bandanna-wearing feline ballerina and a hula hooping cow? It’s a curious combination, but sure, why not. These are just a few of the colorfully and imaginatively illustrated cast of characters that come together in Moo Shake, a children’s mix and match game designed by MoGeneration for the iPhone and iPod touch.

Moo Shake is an educational children’s game that challenges kids’ ability to piece together a picture by swiping side to side along three horizontal panels. There is no reading or language element to the game, which makes it easy enough even for pre-reading or pre-verbal age users.

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Peekaboo Barn Offers Some Lively Livestock

Ofelia Saenz — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 21:00:47 +0000

Night & Day Studios, Inc., the company that in the last few months has brought you such clever apps as Audience Pro, Rimshot Pro and Big Fat Lies Trivia Game, deserves a big-barn round of applause for its recent release of the children’s educational game called Peekaboo Barn.

Designed for preschoolers, Peekaboo Barn appears to be based on the same concept as the classic See n Say toys that have been a perennial favorite with parents and kids for years. Peekaboo Barn helps build early vocabulary by teaching children to match animal sounds with the appropriate picture. Younger players also learn cause and effect, while older kids can use the game to practice early reading skills.

The game’s interface starts with a closed barn door. The barn shimmies and shakes as your child tries to identify the animal sound coming from inside the barn. When ready, just tap the screen to open the door and uncover the animal. A voice identifies the animal and its name appears in the upper right hand corner of the picture. Tap again and the door closes to start from the beginning with a different animal sound.

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Something old, now new, with I See Ewe

Ofelia Saenz — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 22:00:25 +0000

I See Ewe – Matching games are always a sure bet when it comes to designing children’s games. They’re great for younger preschoolers because they’re easy to learn and they keep the older ones coming back for more because each game presents new and fun pictures.

I See Ewe, a kid’s app for iPhone and iPod touch by Claireware Software, continues in the matching game tradition with Match Items, and expands the appeal of the app by including a second game: Learn Words. Designed for preschool age children, I See Ewe features various settings that make this $0.99 app adaptable for players at various ages and levels.

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Wunder Radio Connects to Radio Waves from Around the World

Ofelia Saenz — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 22:00:37 +0000

Joseph Campbell once said you can tell a lot about a city by its tallest building. I’d like to think you can deduce a few things about a place by its local radio stations as well — which is why I’m utterly fascinated with Wunder Radio, the latest release from the folks at Weather Underground.

By teaming up with RadioTime, Wunder Radio has compiled a bank of thousands of stations from around the world. Wunder Radio uses GPS to find stations near you, as well as lets you scroll through options divided by type and location. The variety ranges from talk radio to music by genre and much more. Interested in what you might find playing on a blues station in Mississippi? Wunder Radio’s got it; Curious about what a soul station in Finland or an Argentine TV music station has in store? Wunder Radio has you covered.

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Cookie Catch – Christmas Provides a Sweet Treat–in Moderation

Ofelia Saenz — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 18:30:01 +0000

The great thing about holiday games is that just as your kids are about tired of one, you can ditch it. That’s particularly good for the sake of Cookie Catch – Christmas, a quaint little number by Lima Sky, because any longer and this little cookie would definitely be stale.

Colorful and festive, Cookie Catch – Christmas features cheerful button-nosed Casey beneath a holiday sky of falling gingerbread cookies and snowballs. Slide Casey from one side to the other by tilting the phone left and right. Your score goes up with every cookie he catches, but avoid the falling snowballs which turn Casey’s cute smiley face into a glaring snowball-head.

The game starts slow and increases in speed until your time runs out. There are no advanced levels beyond that, but the high score is stored on the start page, so you and your kids can compete to out-score each other.

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Slydial Your Way Out of Awkward Conversation

Ofelia Saenz — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 22:00:24 +0000

I used to be queen of the perfectly timed phone calls. It’s not easy. You have to find that perfect window of opportunity when you know the likelihood of getting a person’s voicemail is greatest, but your attempt still appears earnest. But because most people live with their cell phones fused to their ears, I have had to become very crafty in my aim to shun actual conversation.

Thank you Slydial for making my life of conflict-avoidance a continued success.

Developed by MobileSphere, the new Slydial free app for iPhones allows you to call any mobile phone and connect directly to the person’s voicemail. Just touch the icon, then touch a number from your phone’s list of contacts, or enter a cell number. The call registers as a missed call on the person’s phone, and everything else on the caller ID pops up the same as it would with a normal call

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