Apps

Ah, the smell of erasers and chalk dust is in the air, which can mean only one thing: it's back to school time in many parts of the world. While I'd be lying if I didn't...

There are over 130,000 apps in the App Store. About 100,000 of those expect you to pay cash money for a download. Sometimes it's worth it! Often, it's not. Prof. Dealzmodo's here to help you tell the difference. Oscar Wilde was right about cynics: they know the cost of everything and the value of nothing. On your next trip to the App Store, don't be cynical. Be smart—even if it means spending a little money. Last fall, John pondered the App Store Effect, which holds that Apple's model results in price...

The Daily App Deals post is a round-up of the best app discounts of the day, as well as some notable mentions for ones that are on sale. HomeBudget with Sync (iTunes) Previously $4.99, now $2.99. HomeBudget with Sync for iOS integrates budgeting and expense tracking with the ability to sync expenses from multiple family members on multiple devices. Get it for $2.99. (via Apps-aholic) iOS iOS

If you’re a fan of time travel, exploring cities, history or virtual reality experiences, you’re going to love the latest project from Da…

Education disruptor, Khan Academy, has released an iOS mobile application for the iPhone and iPod Touch, giving users complete access to its collection of over 3,500 videos. Now, students will be able to continue their education on the go, whether they’re traveling on vacation, commuting, or sitting around with nothing else to do....

The iPhone comes with a bunch of apps you never use. Some of them are poorly implemented. Others are lacking important features. Fortunately, there's a whole world of developers offering some very viable third-party alternatives. Unfortunately you can't delete the apps your iPhone comes with, but here are some alternatives that will free you from their boring grips....

Some space geeks are calling today “The Day the Earth Smiled,” because the Cassini probe is set to take a picture of our planet as seen from Saturn later this afternoon. To honor this momentous occasion, the maker of astronomy software SkySafari is giving away basic versions for iOS and OS X (and discounting the Android version) through Sunday.

Black Friday has brought an assortment of software deals from Apple's AppStore and third parties, and AppleInsider is also offering an exclusive, lowest-price ever on the No. 1 selling speech-to-text software, Dragon Dictate for Mac 3.0, as well as the R/C Micro Drone 2.0 + Aerial Camera.

Duolingo, the popular language learning service, launched the latest update of its iOS app today. Version 4.0 includes a number of new features, but maybe most importantly, this update marks Duolingo's entry into Asia.

SAT test preparation” is a phrase guaranteed to evoke a mixture of horror, anxiety, and boredom in even the most diligent high school student. Mobile game developer Pixelberry Studios, however, believes it can make test prep entertaining by incorporating SAT vocabulary into the latest version of its role-playing game “High School Story.”

This week's launch of watchOS 2 brings a whole slew of new features and capabilities for developers, some of which are already being taken advantage of by new Apple Watch apps. Here's a rundown of some of the best and most interesting watchOS 2 apps that can showcase the versatility of your Apple Watch.

One of our favorite applications to make it in to the App Store this week is Google’s latest iPhone app, Google Shopper. By recognizing products by barcode, voice and text search, and even cover art, Google Shopper helps you find the information you need on millions of products, including online prices, reviews, specifications, and more. Also to feature in this week’s list of must-haves is The Daily, the first digital news publication created exclusively for the iPad. The long-awaited publication boasts...

Hey look: another private, micro social networking service has just launched. From Alt12 Apps, which moms know better as the maker of the BabyBump app, there now comes a new mobile-only private social networking service for parents called Kidfolio. The app, which is celebrating its public release today, offers parents tools for private sharing – mainly photos of children – which can be organized into a scrapbook-like timeline by ages and stages. Along with the launch, the company is also announcing it h...

NYPL Biblion: The New York Public Library has a stunning new app that lets you see a ton of essays, pictures, people, etc and information about the 1939-40 World's Fair. It's like a time traveling machine that brings you back to that era. The app is great too (though occasionally over the top), and easy to navigate, with stacks grouped together and galleries that are easily navigable. Free. The Final Hours of Portal 2: It's a 15,000 word, 13 chapter account of what it took to make Portal 2. Keighley,...

Did you know the first metal detector was invented by Alexander Graham Bell in 1881 in order to extract a stray bullet from President James Garfield's back? This is the kind of interesting innovation revealed in IBM Think, a free app that maps out the roots of technological advances. With a 10-minute HD video and interactive illustrations, it shows the origins of a lot of the technology we use today. Science has come a long since Galileo first made his claims of a sun-centric universe, but that doesn't...

Let's face it, a lot of folks spend their days using their iPads to play Angry Birds and read their email. But your iPad can get you through the day in other ways,...

The iPad has proven to be an especially useful communication tool for young people with autism. It provides a way for young people to express themselves through words and images; it can be used to teach them about everyday scenarios and give them more independence. It's also far less bulky than some communication devices of the past. Autism Spectrum Disorders are developmental disabilities that effect about 1 in every 88 children, and 1 in 54 boys.

There are folks who consider the smartphone or tablet a work of art. If you're one of them, you may want to fill your masterpiece with some artwork by the masters. Studying art --past and present -- is not just a pastime exclusively done in a museum anymore. There's a rich collection of art apps full of paintings and pictorializations available. Some can describe how the work was made and its meaning, others can just simply delight you.

Available for free download in the Apple App Store, the Cicada Hunt app works like Shazam, except for insect sounds.

December (and 2013) will soon be a distant memory, so we thought we’d take a retrospective look at some of the more notable apps to hit our radar over the past month. So without further ado, here’s a quick snapshot of some of the best iOS apps to launch in recent weeks....

Zap Zap Fractions is an iPad and iPhone math app for children that manages to be both instructional and beautiful. When I saw the game demoed by its creators, Malaysia-based Visual Math Studio, at the recent Echelon event, I was impressed by its illustrations of aliens and spaceships, as well as its entertainment value. The concept behind the game, which teaches kids the basics of fractions…

Privacy campaigners are demanding that toymaker Mattel halts the production of Hello Barbie, a Wi-Fi enabled doll that records children's conversations to learn about their likes, dislikes, and ambitions. Mattel says the doll's voice-recognition technology allows it have a "unique relationship" with its owner, but advocates from the Campaign for a Commercial-free Childhood (CCFC) say the new technology could be exploited....

New Year, new apps.

With the bounty of apps available for mobile devices, it would take a full-time job to customize the best apps to suit our needs and populate our devices. Of course, there...