Free Reign – Free iPhone Apps Roundup #8
You remember some of those other free reigns that focused on apps that didn’t do all that much? This isn’t one of those posts. This is a post so chock full of free features that you might go out and buy a yogurt (or some sort of sherbet) just so you can sit down and have something to enjoy as you read through it. Alright, random intro over. Free Reign!
Real Miracles:
Concept: A rare and real ‘feel good’ app for the iPhone. A simple app that helps you learn about and donate to the Children’s Miracle Network, which is a non-profit organization that raises money for children’s hospitals.
Strengths: Simple and well done, and helps a great cause.
Non-strengths: None to speak of.
Overall: Proof that in amongst all the flatulence apps, there are also some apps that can make you feel good about doing a little bit of good for the world around you.
B&N eReader:
Concept: Barnes & Noble branded version of the eReader ebook reader app.
Strengths: Access to over half a million ebooks. 5 free classic books thrown in for free (two right when you launch the app, three more after you register with B&N for free), a free copy of the Merriam Webster Pocket Dictionary, a good (though not overly compelling) ebook reader.
Non-strengths: In my brief testing / browsing, ebooks were more expensive than in the Kindle store.
Overall: Another good ebook reader option amongst many for the iPhone.
Mippin:
Concept: An easy, free news application that presents top content in mobile-optimized format.
Strengths: It is fast, all the content is nicely formatted if you like mobile-optimized content, covers a wide variety of subjects, includes a large number of good sources, and customizable.
Non-strengths: Many pages load quite slowly, and Just Another iPhone Blog is no longer included in the iPhone section (we used to be).
Overall: I recall this one from its web app days, and I’m glad to see a native version. Haven’t spent long enough with it yet to compare it to other news apps.
Twitterfon:
Concept: A clean, tabbed Twitter client.
Strengths: Easy views of friends, mentions, messages, and favorites — as well as the badges for updates in each section. Threaded messages. Easily view profiles in one tap to access followers, following, and reply or retweet. You can also post to twitpic when needed.
Non-Strengths: Ads aren’t that intrusive, but they do pop up along the bottom fairly often. I prefer other Twitter client approaches where you can scroll past the ads.
Overall: If you’re looking for a very clean and very free Twitter UI , Twitterfon is the way to go. It also has a full version with multi-client support and no ads. This look doesn’t scratch the surface of the app’s features, but it’s so good it deserved a quick mention. Still deciding between using this or Twittelator Pro.
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Why not just use an older version of TwitterFon without the ads? I downgraded once they started including them. I would rather pay a couple bucks for the app than have to see ads all the time.
oopsoops, missed this one.
I lost that older copy of Twitterfon — and I'm using Twittelator Pro now. Not really because I like it, but because I bought it and have to justify the purchase