iphoneappsweek

Ever since I was a kid I've had a fascination with racing. My father took me to motorcycle GP races at the age of 4 and we went every year for most of my young life. The big-name racers of the day, the roar of the engines, and the smell of formula fuel as they sped around the track all added to the fun and excitement for the young version of me.

These days I'm not much of a spectator racing fan, but if a new racing game comes out (really on any platform), I somehow automatically become interested. A big racing game release today on iOS got me looking for more fun driving games -- and while I know they're not for everybody -- if you like to "go fast," these games are for you.

This week's collection of iOS apps is all about racing. The first lets you upgrade cars and compete on numerous tracks with a 3D top-down view. The second challenges you to compete, driving old-school go-carts around tracks and has a great overall feel. The third is a well-polished sequel that many racing game fans will probably automatically download.… Read more

There are a ton of image editors available for iPhone that let you play with photos -- many of which I've talked about here. But a specific set of editors lets you create a mask or lets you superimpose one image on top of another for some really cool effects. Recently, a popular Mac photo editor made its way to iOS (the third in this collection) and I thought I would put together a few apps to see how they compare.

This week's collection of iOS apps lets you add unique effects to your images. The first lets you superimpose images on top of each other and offers a ton of tools for tweaking the results. The second lets you blend images together and create masks to make them seem more realistic. The third doesn't bother with two images, but instead lets you add effects to only a portion of the image.… Read more

I look through the new iOS releases and popular apps several times a day to find hidden gems to talk about here at the end of the week. Usually I try to come up with a theme to tie them all together, but I've been tracking some games over the past couple of weeks that are all good, but can't be wrapped up neatly in a nice little package.

Still, though the games are from different genres, each one has something unique to offer and I hope you'll be able to pick a game from the genre you like best -- I promise you won't be disappointed.… Read more

Pandemic, the first game in this duo, was released for Web browsers back in 2007. The object of the game was to infect a person with a disease you created, then manage the outbreak and evolve the disease to create the most worldwide damage. I agree that the game's subject is morbid, but the huge popularity of Pandemic showed that the actual content doesn't make it any less addictive.

At the beginning of last month, Pandemic 2.5 was released for iOS and quickly shot up the App Store's most-popular lists probably based on the Flash version's popularity. But at the end of May, a very similar game was released that might even be better than the original.

In testing these games, I infected most of the world with my various diseases, but never had one that destroyed all of humankind. Those who have played Pandemic in the past might guess that Madagascar was my downfall (it's a joke among Web gamers that Madagascar is always the one to close its shipyards at the first whiff of danger), but it was Iceland that put a stop to the deadly Parkerism.… Read more

Everyone who uses Instagram, EyeEm, or other photo-sharing apps knows how easy it can be to add effects to photos and make them look even better than the original. But there's another group of apps at the iTunes App Store that add something more to your images, taking a mostly mundane photo and turning it into a work of art.

This week's collection of iOS apps turns your photos into hand-drawn works of art. The first offers one-of-a-kind effects to make your photos look like sketches. The second is an old favorite of mine for the incredibly realistic line drawings you can create. The third takes a different tack, turning your photos into super-realistic paintings in the style of some of the greatest painters ever.… Read more

I play a lot of video games. I have a Windows gaming rig and an Xbox 360, and my iOS devices are filled with games from every genre. I would consider myself a fairly skilled gamer, but there are certain types of games designed to challenge even the most seasoned fans.

Back in January, I wrote a similar post called "Games that make you rage on iOS." One of the games I'm focusing on today is the sequel to a game I wrote about then, but it definitely hasn't lost its rage-inducing qualities.

It's important to note that for this collection I recommend grabbing the iPad versions of the games in question (if you own an iPad) because when you play a hard game, you want any advantage you can get and the iPad's larger screen gives you a little more room to work with. However, all of the games listed are available for iPhone and iPod Touch as well.… Read more

Whether you're a fan of social video apps or not, there's something to be said for short, quick videos you make on the fly and then share with your friends. These apps are a lot like Twitter in that you can post your own short videos, follow other video creators, and view a feed of your favorites to see their latest updates.

This week's iOS apps have been out for some time, but over the past couple of weeks, social video app fans are choosing sides, downloading their favorites, and even posting to social networks to talk … Read more

Spring has finally sprung here in Northern California, and with the nice weather and everything in bloom, it's the perfect time to check out some new photo apps.

We all know about apps like Instagram, and I've talked about effects apps like PhotoToaster here before. But I have come across some new (or new to me) photo apps recently that are great for playing with your images and sharing them with friends.

This week's iOS apps are perfect for snapping pictures of springtime (or really, any time). The first is a social photo app like Instagram with … Read more

As we settle in to another exciting baseball season this spring, what could be a better time waster on your smartphone than a good baseball game? I usually write about iOS apps in my weekly collection, but this week all the games I selected have both iOS and Android versions, so everyone can get in on the fun.

This week's collection of apps for both iOS and Android are all about baseball. The first two will appeal to all baseball fans, but are more the quick pick-up-and-play arcade game variety. The second two games are more involved, with a complete baseball experience where you can play full nine-inning games and progress through a season.… Read more