End of Summer Hot Bargain iPhone and iPad Apps

Looking for new apps for your iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad? Here are some of end of summer hot bargain apps! Enjoy!

Plants vs. Zombies is an addictive and cute tower defense game. Plant magical plants in front of your yard to keep the zombies away! Normally $2.99 for the iPhone version and $9.99 for the iPad version, they’re both on sale for a limited time! Must-have app for your devices!
iPhone/iPod Touch Version (99 cents) | iPad Version ($1.99)

MadPad – Meet Smule’s latest app, the MadPad! Remix your life and make a soundboard out of it. Record everyday sounds like opening a soda can, jiggling your keys, your friend’s laughter into the ultimate percussive instrument!
iPhone/iPod Touch 3rd Gen+ Version (99 cents) | iPad Version ($2.99)

Smurfs’ Grabber – If you love Smurfs and crane machines, you’ll love this game! It’s a twist on the typical crane machine. You’ll be given certain smurf formulas and must pick up all the ingredients. Free to play, and you earn up to 5 coins a day. Each coin allows you to play for 5 minutes. You can spend real money for more coins, but I think 5 minutes a day is addicting enough. :) Universal App (Free)

The 911 Memorial Past, Present… – Take a look at the World Trade Center before and after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Read historical facts and watch past videos of the construction of the WTC. See interviews of people involved in the architecture, and read about the plans for its future. The app will be free through September 12. After this, it will cost $9.95.
iPad App (Free until 9/12)

NBC watch full episodes of NBC shows like America’s Got Talent, Up All Night, The Office, Community, Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, The Tonight Show, 30 Rock, SNL, Chuck, The Voice, The Celebrity Apprentice, and so much more! Also see show-related games and photos.
iPad Version (Free)

djay – Transform your device into a full-fledged portable DJ system! The realistic dj interface allows you to mix and scratch songs from your music library. You can perform live, record mixes on-the-go, or enable Automix mode and let djay mix your favorite playlist from your iPod library auto-magically! Normally $9.99, the iPhone version is on sale for a limited time for 99 cents!
iPhone / iPod Touch Version (99 cents) | iPad Version ($19.99)

Music Beta by Google is not exactly a native iPhone/iPad app, but it is an HTML 5 web app. If you have account on Music Beta, view it in your web browser on your iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad and see how it runs beautifully. Save it as a bookmark on your home screen and a nice icon will be added. music.google.com

Five Little Monkeys eBooks – “Five little monkeys jumping on the bed.. one fell off and bump his head. Mamma called the doctor and the doctor said… no more monkeys jumping on the bed!” I’m sure you’ve all heard of this book and watching it animated is so much more fun! There’s great narration and you can read the book or have it automatically play. This week, all the Little Monkey eBooks are on sale for 99 cents. They’re normally $2.99! Apps are all universal, so you cam play them on your iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad!

• Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed
• Five Little Monkeys Wash the Car
• Five Little Monkeys Sitting in a Tree
• Five Little Monkeys With Nothing to Do

“Take Me Out” by Atomic Tom LIVE on NYC subway

View YouTube Video

In October 2010, New York’s band, Atomic Tom had their instruments stolen. But fortunately, they knew how to improvise.

This is just an example of how bands are getting creative with their mobile devices. In the video, you can see “Atomic Tom” playing “Take Me Out” with only their iPhones! You may take away their instruments, but you can’t take away their heart and spirit!

Guitar iPhone app used in the video is iShred Guitar Effects (currently on sale for 99 cents this week only!)

iPhone + iPad App Review: Glee

Smule has done it again with another hit musical app! They teamed up with Fox and made the lovely Glee app — a must-have app for every Gleek! Get your Gleek on and have fun singing with your favorite Glee cast members and friends!

Glee is a universal app (works with iPod Touches, iPhones, and iPads) that allows you to sing your favorite Glee songs with real-time harmonies and pitch correction. The four main features of the app are: Listen, Join, Sing, and Share.

Listen. As your fellow gleeks broadcast their songs, you’re able to listen to the amazing talents around the world. This is a signature feature in most Smule apps.

Join. Want to do a duet with a friend? “Join” in on a song you hear and add your voice to it! You can also create a club by adding Smule friends as singers to your songs or by joining a song on the Glee Globe.

There’s also song requests from the Gleeks inviting you to sing with them! You can sing with Rachel Berry or Finn Hudson. They’ll sing one part, and you’ll sing the other. When the song is done, it’ll be uploaded automatically to the server.

Sing. The main part of the app is definitely singing! Three songs are available when your purchase the app: Rehab, Keep Me Hanging On, and Somebody to Love. New songs are added every week and costs $0.99 each. To purchase a new song, simply click on it and confirm. The song and lyrics will download afterward.

Sing loudly and clearly into the mic of your device. If you are using an iPad, the mic is located on the top, next to the headphone jack. I recommend using your iPhone headset since the mic would be closer to your mouth and the background noise will be canceled out.

Simply pick a song and hit “start” for the recording to begin. While recording, you have the option to toggle on/off the pitch correction and the harmonies. Make your selections and sing your heart out! You can save or discard the recording at anytime. If you finish the whole song, it will automatically save into your library.

In the latest version of the app, you can also sing songs from your iTunes library. Select a song from your collection and start recording. For the best experience, I suggest selecting a karaoke version of the song or one you can sing a duet with. Keep in mind, iTunes song will not be broadcast or shared due to licensing restrictions.

Share. When you’re done recording, your files are saved in the “Share” box. There are three options on how you can share your song — share, broadcast, and add singers. No matter which option you pick, they all will upload your song to the server, so you’ll need to be connected to the internet.

• Share will allow you to email, Facebook, Twitter, or MySpace your link.
• Broadcast will upload it to the server and add you to the musical globe.
• Add singers will share your song with another Smule member so they can add their voice to it.

Here are some tips on how to make the Glee app experience more enjoyable:

Before you start using the app, turn off all notifications on your device. That way, you won’t get interrupted while recording a song.

Also, if you’re using pitch correction, be sure to sing on the same note. If you vary from high to low notes, it may sound a bit strange when the app tries to correct it. You may want to practice with pitch on and off to see which sounds better.

Lastly, when you’re listening to others sing, keep in mind some songs will sound better than others. I suggest selecting “Top Performances” from the top menu to hear the cream of the crop. These performances usually have a lot of Gleek followers.

This app is designed to be played in portrait mode on either the iPhone or iPad. It’s nicely designed and every page in the app displays a colorful photo of your favorite glee character. Overall, the app is worth the 99 cents, but believe me, if you’re a true Gleek, you’ll find yourself spending a lot more on in-app purchases! New songs are added every week so check back frequently.

The Glee app is currently on sale today for just 99 cents (originally $2.99). You can purchase it in the iTunes app store.

For more information, see their official website.

Video Demo

Just watch Nick, a Smule employee, demonstrate the app. It’s just all in a night’s work at the Smule headquarters!

Get Glee on your iPhone and iPad!

To my fellow Gleeks,

You can now sing your heart out with your favorite Glee cast member right on your iPhone or iPad! Smule has done it again, making another hit app that topped the charts right on launch day!

Can’t sing? Not to worry! With the new Smule technology in the app, your voice will be enhanced and the pitch will be corrected as you are singing! The app will also harmonize your voice in real-time, creating a second, third, and even fourth voice!

Just watch Nick, a Smule employee, demonstrate the app. It’s just all in a night’s work at the Smule headquarters!

The Glee app is currently on sale today for just 99 cents today (originally $2.99). It comes with 3 songs and other songs are in-app purchases for 99 cents each. You can purchase it in the iTunes app store.

For more information, see their official website.

iPhone App Review: Riddim Ribbon

Name: Riddim Ribbon
Written By: Tapulous
Category: Games
Price: $1.99 (iTunes)

Size: 45.4 MB
Requirements: iPhone / iPod Touch
Version: 1.0.3
Rate: 4.5 out of 5 Stars

From the makers of Tap Tap Revenge comes the hit new iPhone/iPod Touch game, Riddim Ribbon! it’s like Tap Tap Revenge and your favorite race car game all rolled into one! Riddim Ribbon is a fast and upbeat game that any music lover would enjoy.

So let’s get this party started! You’re the DJ and the controls for the music mix are right in your hands! Tilt your device left, right, and up to the tunes of Black Eyed Peas, Tiësto, Benny Benassi, (and many more artists to be added soon) as you race down a curvy ribbon, gathering pebbles and hoops for points. When you reach a fork in your track, make a decision to go left or right for a different mix of the song. Jump over ramps to the effects level and give your song a more unique sound. Glide along the track, but be sure to stay away from obstacles that can slow you down!

Don’t be too intimidated playing this game the first few times. The game is easy to learn, but difficult to master at first. Once you get the hang of when to tilt the device during the curvy turns and jumps, it’s a lot of fun. Plus, the narrator is quite encouraging!

Each game is about 4-5 minutes, depending on what song you pick. The game comes with 3 great Black Eyed Peas tracks, including mixes of Boom Boom Pow, I Gotta Feeling, and Meet Me Halfway. For a limited time only, you can also get the mashup of “Imma Be/Rock That Body” for free with purchase. For each song, there are 2-3 mixes that can be played in your race to the finish line. At the end of the game, you can view your total points, your achievements, your top scores and dates of when you played, and how you compare to the global leaderboard. You can also share your score via email with your friends.

In-app purchases for 99 cents include various mixes of:
- Tiësto’s Louder Than Boom and Escape Me
- Benny Benassi’s Satisfaction

The game comes in three levels of difficulty — Easy, Medium, and Hard. You must mix up the previous level with an accuracy of 75% or better to unlock the next level. Harder levels include more twists, turns, jumps, and obstacles, both on and off the track.

One option I’d like added to the game is the ability to view the world-wide leaderboard at any time. Currently, you can only view it after you play the game. I personally like to see the scores I need to beat before playing the game. It’s just makes me more competitive.

Overall, the game is a lot of fun, especially if you love The Black Eyed Peas and racing games. The graphics and animation are great and makes you feel as if you are mixing the song. One note, your right hand may sometimes cover the speakers on your iPhone when playing. That’s not good since this game is music-based. I suggest picking up a game wheel accessory or a gamer’s case to enhance your gaming experience with Riddim Ribbon. Have fun, and happy dj-ing!

Riddim Ribbon is currently on sale for $1.99 in the iTunes App Store.

Video Trailer

Happy Grinchmas!

Affinity Zero and I would like to wish you a very Merry Christmas! May you and your families have a wonderful and joyful holiday season! And with that note, here is Affinity Zero’s rendition of Mr. Grinch.

From YouTube:

Affinity Zero’s rocked out version of You’re A Mean One Mr Grinch. Recorded live December 2009.

Al Morita – vocals/guitar/bass, Chris Oufiero – drums, Genevieve Wolff – guitar. Percussion: Chris, Produced/Mixed – Al.

iPhone App Review: I Am T-Pain

Written by: Al Morita

I’m a big fan when it comes to music apps, especially ones that let you be creative. “I am T-Pain” has two modes – one lets you sing like T-Pain on his songs and a freestyle mode that is worth the $2.99 alone. When connected to a speaker, the freestyle mode lets you use the app like an auto-tune machine. You have the option to have the auto-tune setting set to T-Pain or you can customize the tuning to major, minor, and even chromatic scales. This app works great for non-singers and singers alike as it automatically adjusts your voice to the nearest note in real-time.

The “I am T-Pain” app includes 14 songs to sing along with. Five of them are instrumental versions of T-Pain songs including the hits “Bartender” and “Dreamgirl.” Three are Christmas karaoke songs, and the other six are T-Pain beats you can freestyle with. You can also purchase additional T-Pain songs in the app for $0.99 – $1.99. None of the songs are installed by default, so you might spend some time downloading the songs if you have a slow connection. I found the karaoke interface to be very good with easy-to-read lyrics on the screen. If you mess up, you can easily restart the song. By default, all your songs are recorded onto your device so you can listen to them later. You can also upload your audio track to the Smule server and also add an audio player with your songs to MySpace and Facebook. They also updated the app so you can sing along to any song in your iTunes library, which is a cool feature. The only limitation in this mode is that you can’t upload it to the server.

This app has many hours worth of entertainment with the auto-tune feature and a good list of songs to sing along with. I applaud Smule for updating the app with new features and songs. They made an excellent product even better. The possibilities are endless, who knows – you might see someone using the “I am T-Pain” app at your next karaoke party. I know I will.

Pros:

• Excellent auto-tune feature in real-time
• Good selection of songs with app
• Share your songs via the upload feature
• Ability to sing to any song in your iTunes library
• Solid karaoke mode
• Good recording quality

Cons:

• Needs vocal recording level option

Learn more about the I Am T-Pain app in the App Store

Free Holiday Music!

What’s the holidays without a little bit of holiday music? I found some great holiday music for you, and best of all, they’re free!

Amazon 25 Days of Free Holiday Music

Amazon has 25 Days of Free Holiday Music where they give a new Hoilday mp3 each day before Christmas. Free music includes songs from Lady Gaga, Tori Amos, Casting Crowns, and more! Amazon also has a free Sampler Claus album as well!
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Katharine McPhee’s “I’ll Be Home for Christmas”

Take a listen to Katharine McPhee’s sweet voice as she sings her rendition of “I’ll Be Home for Christmas.” It’s beautiful, very soothing, and perfect for the holiday season.

The song is also available in the iTunes store for free, so get your copy now.

Get $3 in MP3s From Amazon!

Love music? Get $3 in MP3s from Amazon! This offer is only valid until Nov. 30th, 2009 11:59pm PST, so hurry! Happy Thanksgiving! :)

More deals: BlackFriday Specials: $5 Music Albums!

The Guild DVD Seasons 1 & 2

Just a reminder to go get your The Guild: Seasons 1 & 2 DVD now! It’s released today for only $14.99 in retail stores!

What is the Guild? It’s a show is about a group of online gamers who meet in real life, and all the funny adventures they have together. The new DVD set is beautifully packaged and comes with a ton of great extras that I’m sure you’ll enjoy.

I got mine, now go get yours too! I had the pleasure of interviewing Felicia Day about The Guild. Be sure to look for it in the next iProng Magazine issue (Tuesday, Oct. 6th).

Also, be sure to watch Late Night with Jimmy Fallon tonight for Felicia Day’s guest appearance! And yes Jimmy, Felicia Day is quite awesome. :)

Related Links

• The Guild: Seasons 1 & 2 DVD
• Watch The Guild.com
• Felicia Day.com
• Felicia Day on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon
• Purchase The Guild in retail stores & content
• Felicia Day Interview in iProng Magazine (Preview)
• Do You Want to Date My Avatar Music Video

iPhone App Review: iKoto

Name: iKoto
Written By: GClue, Inc
Category: Music
Price: $.99
Size: 2.1 MB
Requirements: iPhone / iPod Touch

You can now play the Koto (Japanese musical instrument) on your iPhone/iPod Touch! It sounds really pretty and is simple to play. Just run your fingers across the screen over the strings.

At the bottom right are extra function buttons. The first plays a demo song called “Rokudan no shireable.” The second will play your last saved song. The third will record. And fourth stops the recording and saves it.

The sound of the Koto is so pretty, I thought I’d try out this app.

Geoff on TwitLive

This is Geoff Smith’s first live appearance on TwitLive.tv! I was lucky enough to see him perform on Leo Laporte’s show at the New Media Expo 2008. If you like “I’m a Twit,” check out his other songs as well. “Digg the Code,” “Ones and O’s,” and “Hello, Hello” are some of my favorites on his latest cd.

Marie Digby “Unfold” CD for $1.99

Marié Digby is currently my favorite artist! She’s another talented artist who emerged on the YouTube scene.

I first heard of her from iTunes though. When I heard her remake of “Umbrella” on iTunes, if loved it and had to have it. :) Her “Unfold” cd was released April of this year, and of course I already bought it! (iTunes CD Link). Umbrella, Say it Again, Invisible Girl, Girlfriend, Better Off Alone, Stupid for You, Unfold are some of my favorite songs on the cd.

If you don’t have her cd yet, you get can the entire cd for $1.99 on Amazon for today only! (Buy Marie Digby “Unfold” on Amazon).

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Daynah as Darth Vader

Here’s my geeky attempt to promote Affinity Zero‘s next show. This is a teaser, come to the show if you want to hear the Imperial March song live! :)

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Weezer’s Video

I love Weezer’s Pork and Beans music video! It’s quite geeky and creative. Check out all those familiar YouTube stars. ;)

I guess I shouldn’t be so surprise by the geekiness since Patrick Wilson of Weezer is such a Twit ;) There’s a little bit of Chocolate Rain and Numa Numa in there. ^_^

iPhone Band

Why buy real musical instruments when you can play everything on an iPhone/iTouch? ;) Check out this iPhone Band!

Thanks for the link Cat D!

SEO and Web Design Rap

This put a big smile on my face today! It’s not everyday that I find a rapper who cares about SEO and Design Coding!

follow these instructions when you move into production
your photoshop functions then slice that design
do your layout with divs make sure that it’s aligned
please don’t use tables even though they work fine
when it come to indexing they give searches a hard time

This is what I try to tell designers all the time! No tables unless it’s tabulated data! LOL

Many thanks to iJustine for finding this!

Click on more for the lyrics.
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Imagine – Open Source Edition

Psst. Want to hear something geeky and funny? Take a listen to Neal Campbell’s version of “Imagine”! That song just me smile today. Thank you Neal!