iPhone Apps

I got the chance to try out a couple new apps for my iPhone the other day. I have to admit that my iPhone is as much a video game/toy/entertainment center for my little kids, as it is a phone for me. Yeah, I've got a couple apps on there that I use like Facebook and Twitter and this one that has a virtual ocean complete with crashing waves. But I have 2 pages of apps to occupy the little kids while we're out. I've gotta say, I'm loving this technology. When we're sitting in the waiting room at the doctor's office, I don't have to drag along coloring books, and crayons, and dolls, and cars, and activity books. All I need to do it pull out my phone and let the little kids watch a video or play a game when they're getting restless and we've already played "I Spy" 4000 times.

Color Now is one of the new apps I tried out. You can choose from 12 images (more to come later) to color. The images aren't well-known characters so my little kids were less than enthusiastic about them. You "color" the pages by touching the color crayon you want and then touching the section of the picture you want to color. There are no sound effects or music so it's a nice quiet game that can entertain the kids when they need to play quietly so you don't disturb others around you.



Although I love the idea of having virtual coloring pages for the kids, we found these particular pictures difficult for the little ones to color. They have a lot of really small spaces that my 3 and 5 year old lacked the coordination to "color". I think simpler, larger images would've been much easier and more enjoyable for the little ones to color. As it is, they lost interest in this app quickly. Now, if you're an older kid or an adult who likes to color, you'll probably like to play with this app.

The other one I checked was Stuck Genie. In this game, you maneuver a ball around a maze while picking up other balls on the way. You have to figure out how to move all the balls around the walls of the maze while scooping up every last one. There are numerous levels of increasing difficulty so you won't get bored. There are sound effects and music on this game, but you can control the volume on each. You can also type in your name and the app automatically saves your progress so when you get to level 23 and decide to take a break, you don't have to start all over at level 1 the next time you pick up your iPod/iPhone.



This game is too hard for little kids, but older kids and adults who like puzzle games, will love it! I'm personally addicted to I personally like this game. Savannah liked it so much, she put it on her iPod and my friend's 7th grader played it "to help me win a level", but had a hard time giving my phone back to me when he finished the level. It's a fun time-waster!


If you've got an iPod or iPhone, leave me a comment here and you could win both these new apps for FREE! I'll choose 2 random winners on Thursday.