iPad & iPhone User Issue 82 - 2014 UK

ISSUE 82

WEIRDEST CASES, BEST LENSES FOR iPHONE & iPAD+

PLUS: HOW TO

LOOK AFTER YOUR NEW

iPHONE

ISSUE 82

Best FREE apps for every iPhone and iPad Great games to play in iOS

GREAT APPS & GAMES

130 PAGES

Welcome... We make no bones about the fact that we prefer iPhones and iPads to their Android- and Windows brethren. And one of the

key reasons for that is the ecosystem that surrounds Apple mobile products.

Not only is iOS 7 the easiest to use, most secure mobile platform, but it o ers the best feature set. And by virtue of being around the longest, it has the best third-party support. Speakers, chargers, docks hardware makers queue up to make products that enhance your iPhone and iPad experience. The iTunes Store is chock full of great movies, music andTV shows, and then there are the apps.

This is great for us iPhone- and iPad users, but it does create its own problems. Unlike the open internet, you dont really search for apps within the App Store. In fact we are unusually reliant on Apples own recommendations as to what is hot and what is not. That can make it di cult for good apps to get away. Worry not, however: thats why we are here.

Weve compiled two lists of great apps for iPhone and iPad. Weve hunted through all the free apps on the App Store, weeding out those that arent good value even at free. Meanwhile with our gaming head on weve been thrashing our way through the best games that your iPhone and iPad have to play. Whether you are a hardcore PC or console gamer, or someone who likes to spend their commute abusing disgruntled avian life, theres something for you.

2 iPAD & iPHONE USER ISSUE 82

iPAD & iPHONE USER 82.indd 2 06/03/2014 10:24

ISSUE 82 iPAD & iPHONE USER 3

David Price rounds up 75 must-have gaming apps

Weve collected the 75 most essential, must-play gaming apps for the iPad, iPhone andiPod touch. With reviews anddownload links, read on for the 75 best games ever released for the iPad and iPhone. From strategy and action to puzzles and roleplaying games, these are the very fi nest iOS gaming apps.

The iOS gaming landscape has seen a lot of change. Take pricing, for instance. When the iPhone came out, publishers thought nothing of charging a

75 best games for iOS



tenner for a half-hearted console port. But gamers soon cottoned on to the sub-1 impulse purchase, and prices plunged. After a rash of ad-supported freebies and aggressive in-app purchases, things seem to be settling around the 1.99 mark - and may be heading upwards.

More importantly, perhaps, iOS is no longer considered the poor cousin of console and PC platforms. Angry Birds showed the world that mobile games can be astonishingly commercial, but they can be critical successes too. The games on this list are inspired, well-written, funny, and occasionally even moving. Sometimes you just want a two-minute puzzle for your bus ride, and the iPhone is perfect for that, but if you know where to look, iOS gaming has so much more to o er.

Free games1. Middle Manager of JusticeFree, tinyurl.com/nzeex8fMiddle Manager of Justice is a superhero-themed base-building game in which the heroes are preening, stereotype-spouting goons who divide their time between punching thugs, watching TV and manning call centres. Youre abstractly their middle manager, working out where best to spend the squads pitiful income while assigning your heroes to dole out fi st-based justice to assorted evil-doers. Utterly shallow, but the game is aware of that - which is why it works so well. Alec Meer



2. Real Racing 3Free, tinyurl.com/q8pkw94The Real Racing series is deservedly idolised Real Racing 2 appears in our best sports game section later. But Real Racing 3 follows a di erent racing line, o ering itself for free while touting for income via in-app purchases. The game is gorgeous, even though there is quite a lot of pressure to spend real-world money. David Price

3. UndercroftFree, tinyurl.com/mrxryfwAn old-school RPG very much in the vein of Eye Of The Beholder, Undercroft harks back to a simpler time when men were men and roleplaying games were turn-based. Hasnt been updated in a couple of years, but its low-fi charms remain undiminished. David Price

4. Temple Run 2Free, tinyurl.com/c6htccnLike the ubiquitous fi rst game, Temple Run 2 is an auto-runner wherein you make snap reactions as your fl eeing Indiana Jones-alike strives to dodge fatal drops, spikey boulders, hitting walls at speed and the monkey-monster which forever pursues him/her. Death is inevitable, as is having just one more go. Alec Meer



5. PangolinFree, tinyurl.com/no6kvosA physics-based puzzler in which you bounce a cute little creature around a level and try to get him to the goal with as few shots as possible. Sort of like crazy golf played in mid-air with a scaly animal instead of a ball. We like this a lot, and the basic game is free. Its probably worth shelling out for the extra levels, though. David Price

Shooting games6. Deus Ex: The Fall4.99, tinyurl.com/nnueapvDeus Ex: The Fall is the iOS port of a deep, ambitious and critically acclaimed PC game. The storys all about cybernetic enhancements and post-human ethical conundrums, but it never gets in the way of the important stu : hacking your way through a computerised security door, crawling down a tunnel and shooting a man in the head. David Price

7. Death Ray Manta (DRM)69p, tinyurl.com/pw5dd3yDont try to understand it. Dont even think about it. Youll only give yourself a headache. Death Ray Manta, aka DRM, is an arcade shoot em up in the vein of Geometry



Wars, but where so many of those try to do the refl ex-battering bullet hell thing, this one is all about sensory overload. A fast, frantic purely single-player game of skill, free from leaderboard posturing or cynical microtransactions. Lovely stu . Alec Meer

8. Waking Mars69p, tinyurl.com/p6asmnmWaking Mars puts you in the boots of a jetpacking astronaut/scientist exploring the Red Planet for signs of ancient life. Its your job to fi nd and plant seeds that spread vegetation around the caves, which in turn opens up new areas. You have to evade carnivorous plants and acid pits, and occasionally youll need to kill o a plant to make room for another. Its thoughtful and at times intense, not to mention incredibly pretty. Alec Meer

9. 9mm4.99, tinyurl.com/pcmpb2rThis hugely entertaining third-person shooter, starring detective John Kannon, is very much a case of shoot fi rst, ask questions once the bad guys are dead. The graphics are superb, the dialogue is hilarious and the optional gyroscope-based controls, while initially tricky, make those fi rst few kills all the more satisfying. This is a funny, great-looking game. Ryan Macro



10. Grand Theft Auto 32.99, tinyurl.com/m4evyf9GTA 3 is a violent, darkly humorous ode to mafi a fi lms. You play silent thug Claude, an amoral criminal who escapes from jail and then shoots, steals and joyrides his way up through the citys underworld. Aiming and fi ring can be tricky, but the touchscreen controls are otherwise surprisingly capable. The artifi cial intelligence is believable and entertaining, and the city is vast and diverse, with humorous radio stations and even changing weather patterns. Chris Holt

11. Max Payne Mobile1.99, tinyurl.com/lgecnlhThis iOS instalment of the mighty third-person shooter franchise begins with Max fi nding his wife and newborn daughter brutally murdered and vowing to track down those responsible. Navigation is confi gurable, allowing you to choose onscreen locations for the controls. There are nicely animated intros to take you into key elements of the game, an optional auto aim and a cheat mode allowing quick progression to later levels if you so desire. All of which adds up to one of the best games to hit the App Store: it remains true to the original, and has all the addictive qualities present in the computer and console versions. David Bradforth



12. N.O.V.A. 24.99, tinyurl.com/k9dofetN.O.V.A. 2 wastes little time on a backstory or training, and drops you straight into the action. The controls are intuitive to use and, as with all fi rst-person shooters, boil down to moving, selecting a weapon and fi ring. The games AI is among the best weve seen; enemies are smart enough to duck for cover and use basic infantry team techniques. Both graphics and sounds are top-notch, and theres a multiplayer mode o ering fi ve di erent game types. N.O.V.A. 2 has it all: beautiful graphics, great gameplay, excellent controls and smart opponents. Ryan Rigney

13. Zombie Gunship69p, tinyurl.com/ndtfzsuFrom the cockpit of a heavily armed aircraft, circling above a bunker in which the last remnants of humanity have taken refuge from a zombie apocalypse, your job is to gun down zombies and save human survivors. The grainy, surveillance camera-style graphics help create an intense atmosphere, and the sound e ects are top-notch. The strategy, the graphics and sound, and the thrill of sending the undead back to the grave they crawled out of make for a compelling iOS game. Philip Michaels



14. Dead Space4.99, tinyurl.com/o324grg; 5.99, tinyurl.com/ovv9j55With Dead Spaces pins-and-needles soundtrack and thrilling atmosphere, youre always on edge. Your weapons are nothing more than modifi ed mining equipment, and youre always scrambling to fi nd ammo: every shot counts. This isnt just a great extension of the Dead Space franchise; its a fi ne game in its own right. Chris Holt

Puzzle games15. Lyne1.99, tinyurl.com/nnueapvEach level of this puzzle game presents a grid of triangles, diamonds and squares, along with a few octagonal junction boxes. By tracing your fi nger across the screen you must draw a line

connecting all of the yellow triangles, another connecting all the red squares, and so on. You can use each connecting line only once and touch each shape only once. A true wonder. David Price

16. Blackbar1.99, tinyurl.com/nz3j858You need to decode the increasingly redacted messages you receive, piecingtogether as you do so the story



of the oppressive dystopia you live in, and your rebellion against it. David Price

17. The Room seriesThe Room, 69p, tinyurl.com/blbkyap;The Room Two, 99p, tinyurl.com/m9ymasoThe Room (right) is a puzzle game entirely set on and within one intricate safe, whose surfaces are adorned by strange mechanisms and logic puzzles. Great for the tactile nature of the whole a air works well on the iPad format: spinning the screen to rotate the boxes or sliding to remove letters from envelopes.

The Room 2 takes the fi rst games formula and broadens its scope, spreading its puzzles across various boxes. The understated richness of The Rooms visuals are replaced with something more fl amboyant, and the fi rst games hint of scariness is amplifi ed to provide plenty of atmosphere.

18. Forever Lost1.99 per episode, tinyurl.com/ko8lmzbOne of our favourite point-and-click room escape games ever, Forever Lost is set in a spooky, deserted building that seems to be an old hospital. Youll need to fi nd items and solve puzzles to escape. Its challenging but hugely satisfying. Ashleigh Allsopp



19. LetterpressFree, tinyurl.com/akp3mulBecause Letterpresss approach is unique a clever mash up of Boggle and Strategery it takes some time to explain the rules. Once you get them down, though, this word game is alarmingly addictive. On your turn, you can use any of the letters in a fi ve-by-fi ve grid to build a word. After you submit your word, the tiles you used turn blue. Then its your opponents turn to make a word. The tiles they use to spell a word turn pink. Once all the tiles have been used (or after both players skip a turn), the game ends. Whichever player turned more tiles to his or her colour emerges the victor. Fans of word games wont be disappointed. This is seriously fun. Lex Friedman

20. Year Walk2.49, tinyurl.com/q 8j3eYear Walk is a di cult game to describe, because much of its power comes from its twisting, sinister narrative and its arguably more about the experience than the puzzles.

Essentially all you need to do is control the movement of an unseen character through a wintry, papercraft-styled forest, chaining together particular sequences to further progress. Some of this is perfectly intuitive, some of it requires throwing conventional logic to the winds to some degree, but the overall intent of the game is to make you feel lost and confused. Alec Meer



21. Ending1.49, tinyurl.com/qbwep4oMaze-based puzzle adventure Ending is seemingly e ortless proof that great game mechanics can achieve far more than even the most striking graphics ever could. This frees you up to focus on the challenge at hand: steering an @ symbol through a series of arenas fi lled with roaming glyphs that will kill you instantly on touch. This puzzler will either make you feel very smart or very stupid. Alec Meer

22. Hundreds 2.99, tinyurl.com/a7typbwThe concept of Hundreds so simple, yet open to so many permutations is this: you make the total number reach 100. This is done by tapping on bubbles, which grows the number inside. If one of the bubbles collides with anything else while

youre touching it, its game over. Youll succeed often, youll fail often, youll try again every single time, but what youll never do is predict what the next level will be like. Alec Meer

23. 100000001.49, tinyurl.com/pyqmaqq10000000 is an e ortless blend of match-3 games like Bejewelled and dungeon-running roleplaying games



like Diablo or ORC: Vengeance. As your little pixel-dude wanders through a retro dungeon, hell encounter assorted obstacles monsters of varying challenge, locked chests and doors and you have to arrange trios of matching blocks in the bottom half of the screen to defeat them. A deft fusion of two wildly di erent genres, creating one of iOSs most deadly timesinks as a result. Alec Meer

24. World of Goo HD2.99, tinyurl.com/mzl4armProbably the fi nest puzzle game in the App Store, World of Goo presents you with a pile of small goo balls and an open pipe. Using your fi nger, you have to stack the balls up to reach the pipe: once you get your goo structure to reach the pipe, it will suck up all the balls not used to build the structure. Each level is a challenge and takes a great deal of thought (and structural consideration) to complete. Theres a lot of strategy involved, and graphically, the game soars, its levels littered with canyons, water fountains and volcanoes. Few games are as fun, interesting and enjoyably complicated. Sam Felsing

25. Angry Birds seriesAngry Birds, 69p, tinyurl.com/ozm7fzoAngry Birds Seasons, 69p, tinyurl.com/pppgnnjAngry Birds Space, 69p, tinyurl.com/ln67ovcAngry Birds Rio, Free, tinyurl.com/out27vyAngry Birds Star Wars, 69p, tinyurl.com/prh4pecAngry Birds Star Wars II, 69p, tinyurl.com/n2737we



Angry Birds Friends, Free, tinyurl.com/q4q7jqgAngry Birds Go, Free, tinyurl.com/ngq92d3They had to be on the list somewhere, didnt they? Yes, Rovios world-conquering vexed avians are about as mainstream a pick as you can imagine, but theres a reason for their success: a strong idea backed up by solid level design and physics. We have a soft spot for Angry Birds Space, but the best instalment is Angry Birds Star Wars. Star Wars fans will love the quirky mix of characters, and Rovio deserves a lot of credit for thinking of ways to include Star Wars-style e ects into the Angry Birds game mechanics. Its a great way to while away a few hours. Lou Hattersley

26. Cut The Rope seriesCut The Rope, 1.99, tinyurl.com/oxoya7q; Cut The Rope 2, 69p, tinyurl.com/nbte393; Cut The Rope Experiments, 1.49, tinyurl.com/kmp3q6m Cut The Rope Time Travel, 1.49, tinyurl.com/cxzy2thThere are sweets dangling or fl oating somewhere in each level of these hugely popular physics-based puzzlers, and you have to feed it to a monster called Om Nom. And if you can grab the three stars while youre at it, thatd be great.



Early levels begin with simple ropes and bubbles, and all you need to do is slice the rope with your fi nger or tap to pop the bubbles. But things get far more complicated later: some ropes only appear when the sweet is near them, and you have to deal with hazards like spikes or hungry spiders.

The Cut The Rope games have a neat concept and cute artwork, but the games massive success is down to their superb level design. James Savage

27. W.E.L.D.E.R.1.99, tinyurl.com/oaw7vntAt its core, W.E.L.D.E.R. is a word search. You create words of four or more letters by swapping nearby tiles. If, for example, youve got the letters PUSN lined up, tap S and then N and the two letters change positions, forming PUNS. When this happens, the letters vapourise, earning you points, and any letters above drop down. The steampunk interface looks very cool, and just as unnecessary-yet-lovely are the ambient sounds that whoosh and tick along in the background. Taken altogether, W.E.L.D.E.R. is addictive, instructive and a pleasure for the senses. If you have the slightest interest in word games, you should own it. Christopher Breen

28. Peggle69p, tinyurl.com/pdts54kAt fi rst glance, Peggle looks like a pretty straightforward combination of pinball and Puzzle



Bobble. But while the object is simple clear the stage of orange pegs the methods require clever strategies, knowledge of geometry and some lucky bounces. You launch a pinball at the screen below using a rotating cannon; the ball will clear any block or peg it bounces against. Green pegs unlock potent powers, purple pegs increase your score, ball catchers can award you additional balls to use, while obstacles constantly stand in your way. Its an instant classic and one of the most addictive puzzle games to come out in the past decade. Chris Holt

29. Bejeweled BlitzFree, tinyurl.com/p2j9cfaBlitz takes the match three mechanic of a billion App Store puzzles and squashes it into minute-long blasts of dazzling colours and crazy point tallies. You have to swap coloured jewels within a grid so that three or more line up; the matched jewels will disappear and more will drop down to replace them. But the tense gameplay, constant drip-feed of rewards and competitiveness-provoking Facebook integration combine to make a game that will fi ll any time period you let it near. David Price

30. Machinarium2.99, tinyurl.com/apqcjlaThis classic robotic point-and-click adventure o ers a unique experience with more heart than the



average tin man. Each room has a puzzle for you to solve, moving you forward as you try to fi nd your ladyfriend and thwart a dastardly plot by some robo-bullies. Youll scan environments for items to interact with, combine objects in your inventory

and solve a variety of brain-teasers. Machinarium manages to feel both electronic and organic. The hand-painted visuals feel both cartoony and believable, and the soundtrack blends ambient electronica, jazz and dubstep. Rarely has a game felt so thematically and aesthetically unifi ed. Jason Toc

Strategy/tower defence games31. XCOM: Enemy Unknown6.99, tinyurl.com/p7pzxwtXCOM is a remake of an early 1990s PC game called X-COM, which fuses turn-based ground missions with real-time base building, squad recruitment and research of hi-tech ways to combat an escalating alien invasion of Earth. XCOM is a more fl uid, high-speed take on the same concept, but retains the dual disciplines of tense, battles between your squad of soldiers and an implacable alien foe, andtrying to construct a stronger line of defence and o ence between these.



This adaption of the hit turn-based, alien-hunting strategy game is very much the real deal. While it might take a bit of a hit on the graphical front, it otherwise includes everything its rapturously-received console/PC predecessor did. The price will take some swallowing, but its totally worth it: this tense, slick strategy game is one to keep you busy for weeks, not mere days. Alec Meer

32. Fieldrunners 21.99, tinyurl.com/kaoq4drLike the best tower defence titles, Fieldrunners 2 keeps your mind constantly occupied. As the enemy assaults you with waves of troops, your job is to prevent them from getting to the other side of the screen by building gun towers in strategic combinations. Funnel the bad guys into bottlenecks and then shoot them to pieces. You have to last a given number of waves to fi nish a level, but it will then give you the option of playing Endless mode, and carrying on for a laugh. Its a lot of fun, though di cult when played on any but the easiest of settings. David Price

33. Plants vs. Zombies seriesPlants vs. Zombies, 69p, tinyurl.com/m6v6vuuPlants vs. Zombies 2, free, tinyurl.com/ngapyk5Were more inclined to recommend the fi rst Plants vs Zombies game, but there are certainly good points to the sequel, too. In these unusual and charming



tower defence games, youre a home owner facing a zombie invasion. Your best defence is to plant mushrooms, squash and other deadly veg to fi ght back. The beautiful cartoon graphics are on the right side of zany and set a light-hearted tone: the zombies are silly-looking and distinctive. The game is addictive and surprisingly deep, with a terrifi c sense of humour.

Plants vs Zombies 2 (below) is saddled with an unpleasantly intrusive in-app payments system, but is otherwise superb. Its free, so you might as well give it a go and see if you can stomach the IAP element. Chris Holt

34. Tiny HeroesFree, tinyurl.com/lawdbw5Fantasy gaming isnt just about heroes braving dungeons and slaying dragons. Equally important is the mad architect who bludgeons, shreds and perforates any would-be adventurer who dares to loot that dungeons precious treasures. Thats the premise of this appealing tower defence game: as waves of cartoonish heroes wander into your dungeon, you protect your treasure with spinning blades of death, concealed spikes and caged monsters. Youll have to plan for several kinds of heroes, from tough knights to trap-dismantling thieves, and balance



between planning ahead and dropping explosives in the thick of a fi ght. Jason Tocci

35. Jelly Defense1.99, tinyurl.com/ln45c6lInstead of making you resist a horde of soldiers, this tower-defence game opts for something quirkier: jelly creatures. Your job on each level is to defend a set of crystals from jelly invaders travelling predetermined paths. You defend yourself by placing battle towers (yes, jelly towers) along the path; each one has a specifi c weapon and attack range, and can only attack invaders of matching colours. What makes Jelly Defense enjoyable is that it combines challenging gameplay, attractive graphics and a playful soundtrack. Roman Loyola

Roleplaying games36. Baldurs Gate seriesBaldurs Gate: Enhanced Edition, 6.99, tinyurl.com/o62c2h9Baldurs Gate II, 10.49, tinyurl.com/kf3vwwnThe Baldurs Gate remakes are serious RPGs for serious RPG fans. Recreating the 90s PC classics seemingly in their entirety for the iPad is a logistical triumph, and wed argue that the price tags (which are high for iOS games) are



more than justifi ed, considering the wealth of story and gameplay youre getting for your cash. Thats not to say that theyre perfect; the controls arent easy to master, often reminding you that they were conceived with keyboards and mice in mind. But for quality, in-depth roleplaying action, these are tough to beat. David Price

37. Knights of Pen & Paper1.99, tinyurl.com/o9 m83Opting to recreate the entire Dungeons & Dragons fantasy roleplaying experience rather than just the glamorous bits, KoP&P pulls the camera back to reveal the dork squad sitting there with their 12-sided dice and cans of Vimto, directing the heroic actions playing out on the imaginary stage in front of them. So you control the mages, assassins and barbarians accomplishing heroic feats, but also the pizza delivery boys, school bullies and little sisters playing as them. Its a brilliant concept beautifully realised: charmingly retro in look, funny and compulsive. David Price

38. Star Wars: Knights Of The Old Republic6.99, tinyurl.com/l95yeb3Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (KOTOR) is widely considered one of the greatest Star Wars games, not to mention one of the best RPGs of all time. Which makes it all the more gratifying that this iPad conversion



of the classic game is genuinely good. Many people will have played it already, but if you havent then this is a good chance to play the fantastic game in a well-implemented iPad version. Worth every penny. Lou Hattersley

39. Bastion2.99, tinyurl.com/lzkm8jgCasual description does this painterly action-roleplaying game few favours - games about beating up beasties in exchange for experience points are a dime a dozen on the app store, after all. Where Bastion di ers is in its storytelling. A near omniscient narrator commentates your progress as you play, picking up on your decisions and mistakes as well as furthering a sombre, opaque tale with a voice that redefi nes the very concept of gravel. It adds a huge amount of character, as well as lending Bastion the eerie sense that its watching you. A beautiful game both visually and in atmosphere, Alec Meer

40. Infi nity Blade seriesInfi nity Blade, 3.99, tinyurl.com/mjx4vwgInfi nity Blade II, 4.99, tinyurl.com/kp2lwh7Infi nity Blade III, 1.99, tinyurl.com/oea2h6rThey adopt the trappings of the fantasy RPG, but the Infi nity Blade games arent free-roaming and theres very little exploration. Yet that isnt a criticism. The genius of the series is that it captures and distills the essence of roleplaying games into something almost existential: an infi nite loop of death and



rebirth, fi ghting, learning, looting and starting all over again. All three Infi nity Blade games o er breathtaking graphics the backdrops are works of art but Infi nity Blade 3 is unsurprisingly the best of the bunch, and given how little previous games have dropped in price, its defi nitely the one to start with.

The Infi nity Blade games are essentially a series of epic swashbuckling one-on-one battles with giant monsters, carefully packaged to suit gaming on the go. You tap to attack, swipe to parry, gesture to cast magic spells and so on. In the end youll die, but thats okay: theres always another go. David Price

41. 100 Rogues1.99, tinyurl.com/oqp6rfyThis turn-based dungeon crawler takes sadistic pleasure in the inevitability of death. And, since its part of the hardcore genre known as roguelike, that death is permanent: there are no precautionary saves. But dont let that put you o a fun and entertaining adventure. Playing as a knight, wizard, robot, skeleton or dinoman, you head o on a quest to defeat Satan and his minions. The game has strategic depth, and youll be amazed how much it draws you into its little world before kicking you out again when you make the smallest error. Lovably brutal. David Price



42. Sword & Sworcery EP2.99, tinyurl.com/o7r2sgkSword & Sworcery EP is an ambitious, gorgeous and sonically impressive action title. The game feels like 1990s-era Zelda re-imagined as a point-and-click adventure, but its so much more. The cryptic, foreboding dialogue and the fact that the game world is a ected by the real worlds lunar phases make the puzzles a real challenge, but tight social networking integration allows you to o er and receive guidance; and every step forward feels like a genuine accomplishment. An utterly unique experience. David Wolinsky

43. Dungeon Hunter 24.99, tinyurl.com/ooj4qp2The backstory may lack originality you play a prince whose villainous brother has taken over the kingdom but Dungeon Hunter 2 is no run-of-the-mill game. Its graphics are beautifully drawn and detailed, but the star attraction is the gameplay: the developers have managed to keep things simple without compromising on the depth of characters personality and abilities. The games multiplayer capabilities also give you the ability to play cooperatively with up to three friends in real-time over the internet, or via a local Wi-Fi or Bluetooth



connection. This is a well-balanced title combining stunning graphics and great gameplay. Je Meron

Sports games44. Ridiculous Fishing1.99, tinyurl.com/cuxfuzuIt is ridiculous. It is indeed about fi shing. Its also one of the fi nest games of the App Store, ever. Fishing, because you play as a guy sitting on a boat with a fi shing rod, ridiculous because said rod can drop its line about a kilometre deep and return to the surface with dozens of fi sh attached. At which point theyre thrown into the air, and you catch them by fi ring a pistol, shotgun, machine gun, mini gun or worse at them. A small, simple idea realised with remarkable aplomb and high humour, this is a wonderfully compulsive game. Alec Meer

45. Joe Danger Touch1.99, tinyurl.com/o68lg7mJoe Danger was originally a downloadable indie gem for PlayStation 3, but this iOS port is anything but a lazy conversion. A lot of thought has been put into making the transition to the small screen on the move as smooth as possible, with stunts, wheelies, ducking, lane changes, hops and everything else handled by swipes of the screen. All of which leads to a game that possibly surpasses the



original, while managing to maintain the impressive colourful 3D cartoon style on a tiny screen. Moreish, and a genuine labour of love. Alan Martin

46. Real Racing 22.99, tinyurl.com/nxw4kfuThe original Real Racing set the standard for racing games on the iPhone and iPod touch, but the sequel is even better. The most obvious addition is licensed cars, including BMW, Ford and Nissan models. You can race among 16 cars across 15 locations in career, quick race, time trial, and local and online multiplayer modes. The action is buttery smooth; steering is precise when using accelerometer controls, and there are six other control methods to choose from. This is a winner. James Savage

47. Football Manager Handheld2.99, tinyurl.com/pt5k4erFootball Manager fans should probably have mixed feelings about their obsession landing on iOS. Seven years after the Championship Manager team left to make Football Manager and ruin social lives all over again, this handheld version o ers a streamlined management experience: in the iOS edition of the game, seasons fl y by in a night and Aldershot can be Premiership champions in a week. Thats not to say it isnt deep, serious and (of



course) completely addictive. While only football stats fans need apply, that special breed will be enthralled. Dont forget to eat. Alan Martin

48. New Star SoccerFree, tinyurl.com/d3qzxmbYoure a striker starting out in non-league football and aiming for the big time. On the pitch, this means setting up chances and scoring wonder goals. O the pitch, it means training, dressing for success and decking your house in so much tat that MTV Cribs would stage a tackiness intervention. Pull back on the ball to set power and direction, then tap at the right angle to set the curve, deftly placing the ball where you want. Its a testament to the brilliant gameplay that even football haters will get something out of this. While others strive for realism, New Star Soccer aims for the perfect mobile experience, and hits the back of the net. Alan Martin

49. Super Stickman Golf1.99, tinyurl.com/lqkel9dAs a single-player game, Super Stickman Golf is great. The controls are easy to learn adjust trajectory using large virtual buttons, tap the Go circle and tap a second time to choose power and the physics feel just right. What pushes the game into stratospheric levels of excellence, however,



is its multiplayer. You can challenge up to three opponents locally over Bluetooth or through Game Center, racing in real time and scoring points when you complete a hole fi rst adding a speed element to golf is a no-brainer that makes it laugh-out-loud funny. The retro look isnt as cute as Angry Birds, but the game is even more fun. Lex Friedman

50. Ski Safari69p, tinyurl.com/mmqp8nuAn avalanche is coming, and its up to you to keep skiing mountain dweller Sven one step ahead of icy doom, while navigating hills, dips and other alpine obstacles. Tapping makes Sven jump, while tapping and holding causes him to fl ip you get bonuses for successfully completing a backfl ip (or two). The app takes a page out of the Tiny Wings handbook by adding mini-challenges that you complete to boost yourself to a new level. Ski Safari is an App Store o ering that fl ourishes thanks to its outstanding gameplay. Philip Michaels

Side-scrolling games51. Tiny Wings69p, tinyurl.com/ksg55hyTiny Wings is a side-scrolling game based on a single control. Touch the screen and your cute little bird furls her stunted wings and speeds downwards at a rapid lick. Raise your fi nger, and she fl aps them and soars briefl y, if youve gained



su cient momentum. Racing against the sun (when it sets your bird goes to sleep and the game is over) you have to press and release at the right moments to navigate a series of hilly, undulating islands as quickly as possible, achieving fl ight as much as you can. The basic gameplay mechanics are simple but exquisitely crafted, and the game is an aesthetic delight, from the crayony backdrops to the charming music and e ects. David Price

52. Mirrors Edge69p, tinyurl.com/pg3yet4; 2.99, tinyurl.com/nrzgzvnDystopian free running simulator Mirrors Edge is a unique experience. Sprint, leap and slide as you attempt to escape the Orwellian government that oppresses the world. Swiping left or right will make your character run in that direction, and combinations of upward and downward fl icks make her leap over and slide under obstacles. Well-timed taps and swipes allow you to run on walls, disarm trigger-happy baddies and grind down conveniently placed ziplines. EA somehow manages to retain the acrobatic charm of the console original, while making it minimalistic enough to work seamlessly on iOS. Ryan Rigney

53. Canabalt1.99, tinyurl.com/kd4h2emRun, bleak monochrome future man, run! Theres something nightmarish about this sparsely elegant



one-button platformer: you cant win, you cant escape, and eventually youll miss a jump and die. The aim is simply to get as far across that endless crumbling rooftop as possible. (Its not even clear what catastrophe youre fl eeing, although the giant fi gures stalking the landscape behind are probably a clue.) The automatic acceleration and hyperactive soundtrack ratchet up the energy levels beautifully, the super-retro graphics are gloriously evocative, and its hard to imagine a more accessible or mobile-friendly game. David Price

54. Jetpack JoyrideFree, tinyurl.com/o5vgjzbJetpack Joyride is a delightful and addictive cave fl yer that keeps us coming back for more. You play the role of Barry Steakfries, a disgruntled individual who breaks into a top-secret research lab, steals a machine-gun-powered jetpack, and takes fl ight through the labs never-ending string of long, tunnel-like rooms. As you jet or run along, ever forward, you try to avoid electrifi ed barriers, lasers and missiles while collecting coins. The mix of responsiveness and acceleration is just about perfect, the comical graphics raise it above most o erings in the genre, and the extras including a superb array of vehicles make Jetpack Joyride a true standout. Dan Frakes



Casual games55. Super Hexagon1.99, tinyurl.com/pxjhxxbThis one is simplicity itself. The eponymous Super Hexagon is always at the centre of the screen, and other geometric wireframe shapes are constantly being sucked into it. You play a tiny arrow on the edge of the hexagon, and its your role to rotate around the centre to ensure that youre never crushed by the incoming shapes. It sounds easy but thats misleading the twitchy gameplay is so di cult that staying alive for those 60 seconds becomes your own personal Everest. Youll love and hate the game, but its brilliant. Alan Martin

56. Threes!1.49, tinyurl.com/me9bs7yThrees! is based on a set of numbered tiles which you manipulate around a four-by-four board. There are blue ones, and pinky twos, and you jam these into each other to make white threes. Everything else is a multiple of three created by joining two matching white tiles. Two plus one equals three. Three plus three equals six. Six plus six equals 12. Like Tetris, Threes warns you of the next tile to arrive (or at least its colour - it doesnt di erentiate between the 12 white tiles), so you need to plan ahead. Threes is a beautifully simple, iPhone puzzle game with heart and strategic depth. David Price



57. King of Opera1.99, tinyurl.com/onoaao9We can safely say that King of Opera is the most fun you can have with four people and an iPad. Like all great party games, the concept is amazingly simple: there are four opera tenors, and only one spotlight to hog. When someone else has the spotlight, everyone else tries to shove them o the stage to take it for themselves. (Just like in real life.) For its admittedly short lifespan this is a purely joyful experience that anyone can pick up and play. Alan Martin

58. Drop71.99, tinyurl.com/lvatwkdEvery so often a casual game comes along thats entirely simple, entirely original and entirely addictive. In Drop7 you need to deal with ever-rising rows of balls, each numbered from one to seven. In order to make a ball disappear, you have to use it in a row of exactly that number; if youre lucky this may spark a chain reaction, clearing the board in dramatic bursts and multiplying your score. Each new row of balls that appears, however, comes up grey and numberless, and has to be cracked open by eliminating others around it. Like Tetris or Bejeweled, its easy to learn, di cult to master and even harder to put down. Bonnie Ruberg



59. Draw Something1.99, tinyurl.com/q9tnj5dDraw Something might be fl awed, but for a while this Pictionary-style social puzzler threatened to take over the world. After setting up a game with a friend or stranger (you can have several on the go at once), you are presented with three objects. You pick one, and then draw it. Later, your friend will see your drawing process as a video, and try to guess what it is. Theyll then draw a picture, and you try to keep the game going as long as possible: its collaborative, not competitive. The drawing interface can be a bit clumsy, but the basic idea is economy-threateningly fun. Lex Friedman

60. Fruit Ninja69p, tinyurl.com/p7cnu3oThis funny, quick game combines two ideal qualities: its easy to learn and fun to master. Fruit (and the occasional bomb) appears on the screen, and youre tasked with slicing and slashing it up, ninja-style. If you let three pieces of fruit escape unscathed, or hit one of the bombs, your game is over. You slice by swiping your fi ngers across the falling fruit, and the game supports slashing with up to eight fi ngers at a time. Adding to the fun are great visuals, including



lots of fruit juice fl ying with every slice, and a great, Eastern-infused soundtrack. The iPad version adds local multiplayer, which is hectic fun and highly replayable. Lex Friedman

61. Words with Friends2.99, tinyurl.com/l3kz3l6Perhaps most famous for being so addictive that Alec Baldwin got kicked o a plane for refusing to stop playing, Words with Friends is a two-person crossword challenge that absolutely isnt Scrabble, so Hasbros lawyers can serve their writs another day. Though there might be a few similarities. Enter an email address and search for an opponent using Wi-Fi or 3G, seek out a random player, or invite friends to play through Twitter and Facebook. Theres also a live chat feature with a pair of animated googly eyes to show when a friend is online. The whole package is so enjoyable you might sympathise with Baldwins point of view. Ben Boychuk

62. Flight Control69p, tinyurl.com/o5w6rs2;2.99, tinyurl.com/p6p5h59In Flight Control, you assume the role of an air tra c controller. As an ever-increasing number of planes approach the runways, your job is to guide them all in for safe landings. Planes travel at di erent speeds, and each is colour-coded to match the runway it



must land on. You tap approaching planes and drag a fl ight path for them to follow for landing. As you progress, this process gets increasingly manic, and not surprisingly, its loads of fun too. The game takes seconds to learn and mere minutes to play. What makes it even more impressive is that weve spent hours guiding planes in and cant wait to go and playagain. Lex Friedman

63. Eufl oria HD2.99, tinyurl.com/nmorf67Eufl oria pairs simple strategy with mood and style, o setting tense gameplay with calming visuals and an ambient soundtrack. Your job is to conquer a pastel-hued pocket of space by directing armies of seedlings from colony to colony, wiping out any enemies that lurk there and establishing your own trees to generate new seedlings. Youll face tough decisions about how many seedlings you need to defend your own holdings and how many should be sent out to battle. The push n pull strategy is compelling enough, but its the hand-drawn graphics and pretty soundtrack that really make Eufl oria stand out as something special. Alec Meer

64. Osmos1.99, tinyurl.com/mdzda6a;2.99, tinyurl.com/lxssh9lOsmos was originally a highly regarded ambient gaming PC title, but the touchscreen suits it



perfectly. Its a tranquilising experience, with trippy visuals and music. You play a pulsating ball of light. The aim is to work your way up the food chain by moving around and absorbing smaller balls of light (making you expand) and avoiding bigger ones. Yet this simple concept produces an engaging experience like no other. Despite remaining utterly serene, some levels can get fi endishly complicated, with di erent balls of light acting in dramatically di erent ways. A classic that deserves a place in every iOS gamers collection. Lou Hattersley

Board games65. Puerto Rico HD2.99, tinyurl.com/kjz7swwPuerto Rico invites up to fi ve players (human or computer-controlled) to compete in an entirely non-violent way to establish the most thriving plantation colony. You have to pick one of the iconic fi gures from Puerto Ricos history to play as one of whom is a female playwright and grow corn and co ee, build universities and haciendas, and gain in prestige by shipping resources back to Spain.

All of which makes it sound like the Bible board game that Ned Flanders makes his kids play, but



its actually brilliant. One gimmick weve not seen elsewhere, for instance, is a mechanism whereby the various phases of the game (building, trading etc) only happen if someone picks the related role. Picking the role that will benefi t you and o er little to your foes is one of the ways you can twist the knife - pacifi sm be damned. David Price

66. Catan2.99, tinyurl.com/ou8l4y4Graphically, this is a faithful rendition of Klaus Teubers superb and deservedly idolised tile-based island conquest game. Having the iPad handle those tiresome banking duties and victory point calculations makes things far more fast-paced than the board game, and you can view statistical tables at the end of the bout.

The computer players can be absolute swines, but hardcore gamers may even consider this a plus. And the original game is such a work of genius that this couldnt help being great fun, even if its not the perfect iOS port. David Price

67. Small World 26.99, tinyurl.com/lhagnkhThe mechanic at the heart of Small World involves two decks of cards: one featuring races of fantastical, Tolkienesque creatures (trolls, elves, ogres and so on) and the other featuring adjectives (heroic, peace-loving, wealthy). In each game these two decks are matched up at random, and on your



fi rst turn, and whenever you elect to dump your current lot and try something new, you get to pick a combination. The two cards you get will dictate the special rules that apply to your armies. Beyond that, Small World is basically fantasy Risk with jokes: you conquer territories with armies and get points for the area you control. Its fun, and surprisingly deep. But the best thing is the way that every game is di erent, thanks to the random card-matching. David Price

68. Ticket To Ride1.49, tinyurl.com/nd78dl7;4.99, tinyurl.com/nepholwOne for the trainspotters, you might think, although experience suggests that this simple but engrossing game will appeal to all sorts. You collect coloured cards (seen on the right and along the bottom in the screenshot below), which you then use to build railway infrastructure across the map, attempting to connect up the cities named in your (randomly allocated) objectives. Tactically we believe its relatively straightforward, but the competition for critical stretches can get fi erce. And in the end theres not much in life more satisfying than building a railway. David Price



69. New World Colony1.99, tinyurl.com/nk7fgmlMost well-designed board games take pains to avoid the death-by-a-thousand-cuts feeling of impending, inevitable defeat that hangs over the fi nal 16 hours of the average game of Risk. In Catan, above, losing players almost always have something to aim for even if victory is unlikely, and Small World invigoratingly fl ushes out the board every turn or two, giving it a feeling of constant possibility. New World Colony is not like that but its still a great game, somehow.

Like Catan, it takes place across the hexagonal tiles of a newly discovered landscape, with rival settlers competing to establish a thriving base. But unlike Catan, its quite happy to pitch player against player in bloody head-to-head battles - you can invade and dismantle any of your rivals tiles if you have su cient resources. This makes for a thrilling and almost chess-like middle game, but once you establish a substantial advantage, things tend to revert to a process of mopping up. For this reason we recommend NWC as a solo game: computer players dont mind being slowly crushed, but your real-life friends might. David Price

70. Carcassonne6.99, tinyurl.com/pwda3vaTurn-based tile-placing game Carcassonne divides opinion among serious board-gamers; many of



the hardcore fi nd it twee or dull, but others swear by its simple, engrossing mechanics. We think its an acquired taste, but a winner if you give it a chance.

Each lavishly illustrated game tile features a bit of territory: buildings, roads, meadows and so on. Each turn, a player draws a tile and has to play it next to a compatible tile thats already on the board - for example, a city piece next to another city piece, or a road connected to another road. As the game progresses, you and your opponents take turns placing tiles, as well as scoring points by dropping little game pieces known as meeple on those tiles.

It starts to make sense once you get the hang of it. Give it half an hour and youll be counting meeple in your sleeple, too. Jason Snell

Platform games71. They Need To Be Fed series69p, tinyurl.com/q8dv7at;1.49, tinyurl.com/pupya6rWho are they, I hear you ask. They are gigantic, Little Shop Of Horrors-esque man-eating plants, and youre on the menu. And, unusually in the realm of games, you are expected to help this happen. Classic platform action is the order of the day, then, as your silhouette sprite bounces and



dodges his way past exploding spheres, missile-launchers and carnivorous bats, only to throw himself into the jaws of an oversized Venus Fly Trap. Visually appealing and beautifully constructed, its exactly as annoying as a good platform game should be - which is to say, quite. David Price

72. Limbo1.49, tinyurl.com/kjctm3jSad, cruel and beautiful (this is starting to sound like the lyrics to a Roxy Music track), Limbo is a puzzle-platform game set in a grim and homicidal afterlife. You play as a small boy trying to retrieve his lost sister, solving moving-crate brain-teasers while various hazards ranging from circular saws and rising fl ood water to brain worms and the scariest spider youve ever seen try to destroy you. Its an experience you wont forget quickly. David Price

73. Super Crate Box 1.149, tinyurl.com/otptryySCB looks like an old 8-bit platform game, but each level is a single-screen a air from the top of which enemies large and small constantly tumble, then stomp their way towards a fi ery pit at the bottom of the level. With very limited room to manoeuvre, youll forever be in the way of these monsters suicidal march, and should they touch you, you die. Your job,



meanwhile, is to collect the crates which randomly spawn across the level. This is a frighteningly compulsive game of jumping and shooting: whod have thought collecting plain brown crates would be so tense and thrilling? Alec Meer

74. Stealth Inc2.99, tinyurl.com/o5kfvotYou control a series of disposable clones, tasked with creeping around traps, cameras and robot sentries and trying to stay alive long enough to hack into various inconveniently located computer terminals. You need to think hard about the best route through each level, but once you plunge in the game is all about fast-twitch hand-eye co-ordination not just in order to get a good time, but to make it through the lethal level furniture. Timing and brains alike are needed. Highly recommended. David Price

75. Doodle Jump69p, tinyurl.com/ok7fow2Doodle Jump o ers addictive, simple, addictive, mindless, addictive fun. You control a hand-drawn creature whose only goal is to get higher. As you tilt your iDevice, the creature jumps towards various bouncy platforms. Most of these are stationary, but youll also encounter brown platforms that break if you land on them, blue ones that move and springs that provide a boost. This is addictive and deliciously replayable. Lex Friedman



There are masses of incredible iPhone apps that cost nothing, so save your money and start installing

39Best free iPhone appsLooking for free iPhone apps? Were here to help, with our guide to the best free apps for iPhone, coveringnews, photography, entertainment, work and social apps. No-one likes spending money if they can avoid it - even those whove just spent a fortune on an iPhone 5s or iPhone 5c. In fact, theyve probably got less cash to spare than the rest of us after settling up with Apple. Luckily, there are masses of free apps on the App Store, many of which are just as good as the paid-for alternatives, enabling you to expand your devices capabilities in myriad exciting ways.



Communication1. Facebooktinyurl.com/cuj6v4tIf youre on Facebook and most of us are then this is probably the fi rst app to download on a new iPhone. Its free, it looks good, and fi ts in with the design aesthetic of iOS 7. It does a good job of getting out of the way and letting you fi nd out where your ex-girlfriend has been on holiday.

2. Skypetinyurl.com/m8rdb69A versatile alternative to FaceTime for when you want to video-call friends and relatives who dont own Apple devices. It features a slick, user-friendly interface and the ability to make calls over 3G, although call-quality issues and data limits mean wed recommend this as an indulgence only.

3. Twittertinyurl.com/naulah9Like Facebook, Twitters free iOS app is simple and e ective, and has been updated to look great within iOS 7. Its intuitive to use and ideal for the more basic aspects of using the service.

4. Mailboxtinyurl.com/k3fpnltMailbox is an excellent free email-management app. The beautifully polished app is a joy to use, and makes managing email as painless as possible.



What sets Mailbox apart is its approach to managing the contents of your inbox. As you navigate your inbox, you can tap on a message to view it. Or you can fi le it away without ever leaving your list of messages: swipe right on a message and it will turn green to show youre archiving it. Pull a little further and it turns red to show youre deleting the message instead. Swipe left on a message or tap the clock icon in message view and you can in essence press the snooze button on it, choosing when youd like that message to reappear. Its all intuitive, easy to master, and honestly kind of fun.

05. Gmailtinyurl.com/n8tkcjdThe Gmail app has been updated for iOS 7 and, if youre reliant on Googles mail service, its an obvious one to try. Its free, it looks good, and its tightly integrated with other Google services.

06. WhatsApp Messengertinyurl.com/blrovygWhatsApp is one of those apps that divides people into two camps: the ones who havent heard of it, and the ones who wont shut up about it. But its superb for keeping in touch with groups of friends without spending a groat,allowing you to send text messages, videos, pictures and audio to your friends or family at no cost beyond the data used. Why would you send a MMS? The app is easy to use and, in our experience, habit altering.



07. Find My Friendstinyurl.com/pp3hnsjFind My Friends had a pleasant makeover following the release of iOS 7, and those still interested in stalking their friends, checking up on their wifes whereabouts and making sure they dont end up in the same pub as their dad will fi nd it as useful as ever.For those who havent tried it, its free to download and well worth exploring.

Photo & video08. Photosynthtinyurl.com/qzv75nzPhotosynth for iPhone is an interactive panorama capture- and stitching tool that facilitates easy sharing. Tap a camera icon at the bottom of the screen, orient the iOS device in portrait or landscape mode, then tap to begin. Photosynth uses a rectangle with a centred dot to indicate the area being captured. From where the fi rst image is captured, the app paints edges using dotted lines to show whats missing. Move the camera around, keeping it in the same plane of motion, not rotating it slightly or tipping it forward or backward, and the app will automatically capture new portions.

09. Facebook Cameratinyurl.com/knhsz6cFacebook Camera is a standalone, somewhat Instagram-esque iPhone app for browsing your



friends photos and sharing those of your own. You can shoot photos from within the app you get the standard Camera controls and, once you snap a photo youd like to share, you can tap to crop it, apply a fi lter, and/or share it on Facebook. (You can do the same with photos from your Camera Roll.) Camera automatically detects faces in photos, and prompts you to tag them if youd like.

10. iPhototinyurl.com/n8c26xdDoes this count as free? Sort of. iPhoto still carries a price tag of 2.99 on the App Store, but if you buy a brand-new iPhone or iPad (or a new Mac, for that matter), youll be able to download it for free.

While the Mac version of iPhoto may not have had much of an upgrade, its iOS counterpart has received a signifi cant interface makeover, as well as a number of new features. The cleaner look of iPhoto 2.0 for iOS is slightly marred by the inconsistencies in the way it organises your photo collection, but those are relatively minor annoyances and the new interface is, on the whole, more streamlined and better suited to rapidly skimming through large collections of photos.

11. Instagramtinyurl.com/mkex99mThere are two main areas of Instagram: photo editing and social. Editing photos is very simple: existing photos can be selected from your photo roll,



or you can capture a new image within the app. The Filter panel enables you to tweak the your photos using di erent e ects. But its the social side of Instagram that sets it apart. You can share photos via your Facebook, Flickr and Tumblr accounts, as well as with Foursquare, which enables you to tag a photo with its location. Instagram also works as a social network in its own right.

12. Adobe Photoshop Expresstinyurl.com/b3ahllwPhotoshop Express was fi rst launched in 2009 as a cut-down, free version of Adobes dominant image-editing software. Its limited palette of features was expanded with the second and third versions, adding packs of e ects and camera e ects that can be purchased from within the app, private online albums for ease of sharing and iOS 7 optimisation.

Productivity13. Dropboxtinyurl.com/cel9creDropboxs cloud service lets you store and sync fi les online, so theyre accessible from multiple computers. And with the companys free iPhone app, you can access your Dropbox fi les on the go. Its a reliable and user-friendly o ering.

But Dropbox has an ace up its sleeve in the formof Photo Uploads. Install the Dropbox iOS app and any pictures snapped on your iPhone will be copied to your Dropbox cloud storage, making



it easy to quickly view the fi les and share them with other people.

14. Evernotetinyurl.com/n95scjxThis note- and snippet-managing service lets you type text notes and take photo notes with your iPhones camera. After you capture a note, Evernote automatically uploads everything that you put into it to the companys servers, where your notes are indexed for easy search and retrieval, and become available for syncing to all your devices. Fast, smooth and extremely functional.

15. Any.dotinyurl.com/m8azlpkAny.do is a free productivity app for iPhone that delivers in just about every way. Its great to look at, easy to use, and e ective at helping users get stu done. In either the Category or Schedule view, the task list is presented in a clean, spare format, and Any.do has many layers of organisation. Its both easier to use and more pleasing to look at than the native Reminders app in iOS.

16. Documents 5 by Readdletinyurl.com/olz3h27Documents is, as the name suggests, an app for keeping your documents in one convenient place, particularly when on the move. Those documents



include text, audio, music fi les, and web- and email content. Its been awarded Editors Choice by Apple in more than 70 countries, which is a fair refl ection of the apps quality and usefulness.

Shopping17. eBaytinyurl.com/petyc38The fi rst rule of online auctions is that you need be constantly connected if not, how will you be able to make a last-minute bid on a desired item if youre away from your computer?

Thanks to eBays iOS app, you dont have to worry about missing an auction. This fullyfl edged app allows you todo just about anything eBaysfull site does.

18. Amazontinyurl.com/mfzvlf2Amazons iPhone app lets you do exactly what you would expect: search for products, read user reviews, compare prices, track packages, view and cancel orders and, you know, buy stu .

Brilliantly, however, the app takes things further. You can scan barcodes using your iPhone, or take photos of things you like while out in other retail establishments, and Amazon will do its best to provide you with price comparisons of the same or similar products on its own books. Clever stu .



Entertainment19. Bloom.fmtinyurl.com/c6fmbxyBloom.fm is an interesting proposition, at its cheapest covering those who arent too sonically obsessed, who simply want to keep tabs of current musical trends. In its most basic form, Bloom.fm is a free radio-style streaming app, with adverts, where you select a station based on the top 100, a genre or an artist. The app will then put together a playlist from a catalogue of 22 million songs, and you can skip tracks you dont like. You download the app for free and dont have to pay a penny if you dont want to and if you are willing to crack open the old wallet, there are some attractive subscription o ers.

20. GarageBandtinyurl.com/ahumlbcIf youre a serious musician you might fi nd the iOS version of GarageBand a bit gimmicky, although its much more likely that youll appreciate it as a handy portable notebook. For those who can hear it all in their heads, but have no training, and never felt confi dent enough to lay it down, GarageBand for iOS interface is nothing short of a miracle.

Its free, too, although a one-o in-app purchase of 2.99 unlocks all the extra instruments and loops.



21. Spotify Musictinyurl.com/pptxx76Arguably one of the most popular music-streaming services, Spotify allows users tolisten to 13 million tracks for free (peppered with ads) or ad-free via the 10-per-month Spotify Premium service.

A neat trick is that tracks can be stored locally on the iPhone. This means you can listen to tracks even when you havent got a data connection, or when youre out and about and dont want to waste your 3G data. In this sense, Spotify becomes almost a replacement for (or at least an e ective addition to) the Music app built intothe iPhone.

22. Shazamtinyurl.com/chgyzysShazam started life before the advent of smartphones and tablets, but has in essence been refi ning one idea: the ability to identify the music all around you by simply listening to it. Users simply tap the Shazam button to identify tracks they like the sound of or want to avoid ever hearing again.For music fans, Shazam is an essential app, one that should also appeal to casual users who simply want to identify which song is being used to soundtrack a new ad or drama, without resorting to a trawl through the internet. Its ability to identify even the most obscure of tracks is very impressive.



23. Sky+tinyurl.com/ozx2ysjSky+ puts you in full control of your Sky+HD box whether youre sitting in front of it or the other side of the world. Most useful is the ability to set your Sky+ box to remote-record your favourite TV programmes away from home and on the move. Forgotten to set the fi nal episode of Games of Thrones to record? Getting round Skys bug of recording that second back-to-back episode via Series Link? The free Sky+ app sorts all that out for you.

24. BBC iPlayertinyurl.com/9hjndgkWith its large catalogue of TV shows and radio shows, all streamed without ads, the iPlayer app enables you to watch any show broadcast in the past seven days. The BBC iPlayer app should be a stock download for all iOS device owners in the UK. The ability to cache shows for 30 days will make it a vital component for anybody going on long journeys without a reliable connection, and also make it less data-hungry when watching television shows.

25. iPlayer Radiotinyurl.com/cn5x6heBBC iPlayer Radio brings together the corporations vast and varied radio output into one dedicated,



convenient app for computers and iOS devices. Its a sensible approach, complementing the BBCs popular iPlayer catch-up TV service, while emphasising audio over visual content. The BBC has a lot of audio content to o er both live and archived via catch-up and podcasts which clearly can get overlooked in the search for the latest episodes of popular TV shows such as EastEnders, Top Gear and Doctor Who.

26. Podcaststinyurl.com/luxb24sApples fi rst stab at its Podcasts app didnt support playlists, didnt sync podcasts between devices, and its Now Playing screen was split into two pieces. But since version 1.2 its been a di erent matter. Playlists (called Stations) have been added, iCloud syncing has been implemented to ensure synchronisation between devices (and with iTunes on your computer), and the Now Playing screen is a single unit that blessedly lacks the old tape-deck interface.

27. Kindletinyurl.com/cdpmzrxHow do you judge a reading app? We demand an app with a pleasant reading experience; benefi ts such as a built-in dictionary, easy and fast navigation and search, and customisation options; and a store with a massive ebook selection, and one thats easy



to browse from an iOS device. Amazons Kindle app shines on all those fronts. Thats why, despite competition from no lesser a giant than Apple and its iBooks o ering, its still the best e-reading option in the App Store.

28. SongKick Concertstinyurl.com/qh49tngAnother neat and ingenious free app, SongKick noses through the artists in your music library, then creates a calendar of upcoming concerts in your area. Simple, but radically convenient.

29. Radioplayertinyurl.com/oeoq3syFounded by various broadcasting heavyweights, including the BBC,Global Radio, Guardian Media Group, Absolute Radio andRadioCentre, Radioplayer billsitself as a not-for-profi t company with a single purpose: to serve radio and its audiences by making listening easy. The app delivers on that promise.

If your musical map doesnt extend beyond the UK, then Radioplayer is an excellent choice, with plenty of channels available despite the geographical limitations. Its Recommended option, much improved by logging into Facebook, also helps you discover new channels and broadcasters when you want to broaden your horizons.



Travel30. NavFreetinyurl.com/lw6e7xcNavFree is a free satnav app available for the UK, Ireland, US and other countries. It operates as would a TomTom or Garmin satnav: you enter a postcode or an address, and it provides a quick and e ective route to get you where you need to be. You can also carry out a Google search for a business name, then navigate to that business based on the results fed into the app. It may be free, but it gets the job done.

31. Wheelytinyurl.com/nsed3zpWheely is a free app that adds convenience to the cab-booking process, and may even save you money. Because the journey fee is agreed before you step into the vehicle, you know exactly how much youre going to pay regardless of how long the journey will take. Given Londons notorious tra c, that can only be a good thing. And if you do get stuck in a jam, all of Wheelys vehicles o er free onboard Wi-Fi, so you can keep working as you wait.

32. Yelptinyurl.com/lq8j855Apples Maps service features built-in Yelp reviews of local business, but if you dont like Maps or just want to get straight to the reviews the companys



own app is free. The information available is pretty detailed. As well as reviews, you get pricing, nearest transport options, photographs, opening hours, and even information on ambience, noise level and the expected attire. Yelp is certainly worth downloading. Its a good way to fi nd local listings, and a good tool for business owners, too.

33. Google Mapstinyurl.com/abcfu96Its time to take sides: Apple Maps or Google Maps? Actually, the joy of free apps is that you can hedge your bets and use both. Most users reckon Google is still ahead, and wed strongly recommend that you download Google Maps and test it for yourself.What people need from a navigation app is accuracy, and we still feel that Google is more reliable.

34. London Bus Live Countdowntinyurl.com/nthsnbpBus-checker apps, such as this free example for Londoners, fi t into the category of apps that quietly improve your life. Stuck at a Barnet bus stop late at night with no idea whether its worth waiting for the next 184? Hook yourself into the TfL mainframe and see a ticker of approaching buses and their approximate times. (With the emphasis on approximate look out for the crushing disappointment of the very occasional phantom bus.) Apps are available for all major cities.



35. Tickety Splittinyurl.com/qy3rxgjWere confl icted about recommending Tickety Split, since in its current free form it apparently costs the owners money to run the owners being that nice Martin Lewis and his team at moneysavingexpert.com. But its such a clever idea. You see, thanks to the string-theory-esque logic behind rail-ticket pricing, its often possible to save cash when booking train tickets by splitting the journey into multiple shorter legs this app helps you work out where to make the chop.

Reference36. BBC Weathertinyurl.com/osjuy9dAnother brilliant and free alternative to Apples own Weather app for the iPhone is Apple doomed? Well, obviously not, but armchair meteorologists have plenty to enjoy on the App Store.BBC Weather is a useful, attractive addition to the wealth of weather-related apps and, while there are more detailed and varied alternatives available, the BBCs o ering wins out for ease of use and clarity.

37. Yahoo Weathertinyurl.com/n2q3vatYahoo Weather is a vast improvement on Apples (Yahoo-powered) Weather iPhone app, combining plenty of weather-junkie data with attractive views of the UK and beyond. Apple was impressed enough to award Yahoo Weather an Apple Design Award 2013



award, proclaiming that the app stands apart with its simple, uncluttered, and beautiful visual design. High praise indeed for a direct rival.

38. BBC Newstinyurl.com/o7talu3The BBCs News app provides the latest news from around the world, and o ers push notifi cations to alert you to breaking news as it happens. You can tailor the news categories to your preferences, and there are video reports on most of the top stories.

39. Flipboardtinyurl.com/mkzynlrWeve popped the mighty Flipboard in our Reference section, but it could have easily appeared with the other social apps at the start of this article because social networks are where it sources its articles. According to the team behind the app, Flipboard Is on a quest to transform how people discover, view and share content by combining the beauty and ease of print with the power of social media. Flipboard is a must-have app. Beautifully tactile and responsive, it makes reading anything on your iPhone a absolute pleasure, one ideal for exploring both favourite news sources and discovering new and inspirational content, including user-curated personalised magazines.



We all like a freebie, but as David Price explains, sometimes you get what you pay for

Why apps need to be more expensive

I was recently involved in a Twitter discussion with a couple of tech fans. Twitter User A recommended an iOS game. Twitter User B tutted that it looked expensive. The game cost 1.49.

Is it possible that smartphone- and tablet users have developed something of an entitlement problem? Its di cult to think of a time when good-quality software has been more widely available or cheaper, but this has made us purse our lips when



asked to cough up the price of half a pint for an appthat took months to create.

The race to the bottomWhen did we get so tight with money? Or, to approach it from another angle, when did developers get so generous?

It hasnt always been this way, and in certain segments prices have remained stable. During the 90s it was normal to spend 40 for a new SNES game, and were in the same ballpark today: Super Mario 3D World for the Wii U costs 39.

Desktop software varies wildly, and far more software is now distributed for free Apple, for example, lets Mac users upgrade to OS X Mavericksfor nothing but there are still plenty ofhigher-priced exceptions. Adobe charges more than 1,000 for the latest version of Creative Suite. And triple-A PC games cost 30 or so when they launch. Its not as though were afraid to spend money on software. Its just that when its called an app, the wallet shrinks with fear.

App stores werent always the bargain-hunters paradises they are today. But as the number of apps has rocketed and supply outpaces demand, market forces cast their spell, and prices have dropped.

Other than insane competition between thousands of apps, developers are encouraged to pitch their prices low by the importance of the



charts; if you can get to the top, success becomes self-perpetuating. It makes more sense for devs to aim for a huge number of low-margin sales than a sensible number at a sensible price. But for every Flappy Bird there are thousands of zombie apps that are never downloaded.

How much do apps cost to build?We asked some developers about current prices on the various app stores, and if they are enough to make back the costs of an app project.

Garry Partington, CEO of Apadmi, stressed that app development shouldnt be viewed as a get rich quick scheme. With app production costs averaging at 30- to 60k, it takes a lot of downloads at 1- to 3.50 to recoup the costs, he said. Hit apps recoup their costs and more, but there is an enormous number of apps that will never make a profi t.

Is the answer to cut corners in the development process? Developers in Silicon Valley/San Francisco are known to be notoriously expensive, Partington added, but the counter argument is that you get what you pay for with app development.

The truth is, despite the much-heralded lower barriers to entry that accompanied the rise of mobile, creating quality software is just as costly as ever. And lower development spending is likely to result in a drop in quality.

A risk-averse marketBargain-basement prices may not be good news for developers, but why should we care? This a ects all



of us. Its a question of the sort of apps market were creating. Dino Patti, CEO and cofounder of Playdead, believes developers are pricing their wares about right, but argues that pricing trends in the mobile market mean its games wont match the experience you can get on PC and console.

The lower pricing is causing most developers to do projects with a low fi nancial risk, Patti explains. And the result of that is what we now see in the app stores. I have never had an experience even close to those Ive had on a PC or console. These two things are almost incomparable.

Is this sustainable? If you are making free-to-play and small games suitable for mobile devices its very sustainable. If you are trying to make a quality experience on a bigger budget you wouldnt aim for this market in the fi rst place.

Bad gamesMaking good software is expensive, di cult and, above all, risky, because you dont know if anyone is going to like what youve created. And when the returns are so thin, theres little incentive to innovate. The mobile games market is notoriously prone to cloning, with a tendency to unoriginality that runs the gamut from respectable homage to outright plagiarism, and this is at least partially attributable to the low margins. Developers churn out carbon copies of existing games, because making new software isnt worth the e ort.

And the mobile games that arent thinly veiled copies of previous successes are free-to-play abominations. Freemium is the logical endpoint of



a market in which nobody is allowed tocharge a realistic price up front. If you wont spend money onapp downloads, you force software makers to fi nd other ways to get your money. And inthe case of freemium,

thatmeans games that totally subvert the very idea of gaming in the name of profi t.

Lets take an example. The current (and deserved) punching bag for mobile gamers is EAs desecration of the beloved 90s classic Dungeon Keeper. Dungeon Keeper on mobile is free, but everything is done to hamper and slow down your experience until you crack and pay for in-app purchases.

Instead of trying to make the game as fun as possible, so that you buy future releases by the designers, and tell your friends how good the game is so they buy it too, freemium designers aim to make your life as unpleasant as possible. This is what we get if we dont pay.

PortingOne solution to the lack of adventure among developers is porting. Take Playdeads Limbo, for example an astonishing artful and visually ambitious game that couldnt be further from the world of Candy Crush Saga. Limbo made its nameon the PC, a market where prices are higher



and innovation is more likely to be rewarded. Once it succeeded in that environment, Playdead made the transition to mobile at2.99.

That is also where Curve Digital pitched Stealth Inc, another superb PC game that

appeared in iOS form. Rob Clarke, Curves PR and marketing manager, comments: Stealth started life as a PC game, moved to the PlayStation and came to iOS as a premium game with a single piece of IAP. Weve always priced the game di erently in the various markets but, as is expected, the iOS version works out about half the price.

I think we got the price right. We stuck with a premium model because we feel that freemium games work only if thats your goal from the design stage, and were glad to see that theres a healthy appetite for premium titles that have a fairly hardcore appeal.

The upward curveWhats the future of app pricing? As Partington puts it, consumers have been conditioned to expect the current price point for mobile apps. Is this a market that can go only downward?

As long as we continue to pick the free alternative, even when its fl awed, app designers aregoing to be motivated to race to the bottom.



From baby hands to neck braces, Lou Hattersley looks atsome of the weirdest accessories to grace an iPhone

Weird iPhone accessories

Japanese bacon and eggs iPhone caseClose your eyes and pretend youre in a small meeting room. On the screen is a PowerPoint presentation marked iPhone case sales 2013? A nearby whiteboard has new ideas and is covered with feverish marker pen. Its 5 oclock on a Friday. Youre tired. One person, wild-eyed in desperation says: What does everybody like? Food, replies another. Everyone likes food, right? So whats the worlds best food?, somebody says. Bacon. Bacon and eggs! Everyone likes bacon and eggs. A



random person shouts Hey! Lets make this iPhone case out of bacon and eggs!. You hear yourself saying Lets do it! Thats a great idea!

HANA iPhone CaseHana means nose in Japanese, apparently. Not that it seems much of an excuse for this nose-shaped iPhone case. According to the makers you can stick your fi ngers into the nose slots to hold the phone upright. They say that as if it makes it all okay. As if they expect you to say Oh! Now it makes sense.

Japanese Hand caseThis creepy iPhone case did the rounds a while back, but did you know that there are now two creepy iPhone hand models available? That meansthat it was popular enough for the range

to be expanded. You can choose between Namis Hand and Yamatos Hand.

Because the one thing in fact, the only thing that could possibly make attaching an artifi cial childs hand to your iPhone even more creepy, is choosing between two di erent make-believe childrens hands.

iPhone Ear caseEar ere. Who doesnt want to turn

their iPhone into a giant ear? ThisGiant iPhone Ear Case

isgreat.



Burger iPhone dockBecause owning a bacon and egg iPhone isnt enough. Why not couple it with this iPhone hamburger dock? Apart from the obvious reasons like sanity, and taste, of course.

iFork iPhone dockAn idea that needed to happen, says the Etsy website. While were not wholly sure how serious they are, this is a seriously forked iPhone case. This iFork iPhone case really doesnt look that safe to us. We guess you need something to eat the bacon and egg case with.

80s retro iPhone caseTake a trip back in time to a point where

phones were phones. Big, giant phones that you held with both

hands. Take a look at this 80s Retro iPhone case.

TableConnect iPhone caseWe know what youre thinking

how cute! It turns the iPhone into a dinky table. Nope! Thats a

full-sized table with a 60in display youre looking at.

The iPhone is hooked up inside it. As the

press site says: TableConnect

allows users to



connect their phone or tablet and instantly use any of the millions of available iOS and Android apps at a much larger scale.

Vyne iPhone holderWho needs hands? In the words of the Vyne press site: Vyne is a hands-free viewing accessory for thesmartphone. It is designed to be worn sitting down in a stationary position for viewing media content for an extended period of time.

JoeyBra iPhone holderWhere else would you keep an iPhone? Handbag, pocket oh you just havent got any imagination. As the Joey Bra website says sexy, comfy and functional.



Lou Hattersley reveals what they mean

Compared to most computers the iPhone is a wholly reliable device. You spend a lot less time maintaining, and fi xing an iPhone than a computer to keep it working. The iPhone is a stable device. Even so, mistakes do happen, and when one does you will get an error message fl ash up. Sometimes it will appear on the iPhone screen as an alert, sometimes it will appear on the Mac screen when you connect an iPhone to a Mac.

The iPhone error message may say something like The iPhone cannot be synced. An unknown error occurred or just show a picture of the

Understanding common iOS error messages?



Lightning connector cable and an iTunes logo. What do these iPhone error messages mean, this guide to iOS errors will help you understand them.

This accessory is not made to work with iPhoneThis warning appears when plugging the iPhone (oriPod touch) into a dock or speaker system. It letsyou know that the iPhone cannot control the device, but it can charge through it. In the case of uncertifi ed cables wed be careful. There have been reports of third-party chargers not meeting health and safety standards.

If you dont have a device attached to your iPhone, then it could be in trouble. Check for debrisin the socket, sometimes dirt can be inside the dock connector causing the iPhone to think its attached to something when it isnt. iFixIt recommends cleaning out the dock using a toothpick. If there is no debris try to restart the iPhone by holding down the Home Button and Sleep/Wake button for 10 seconds.

iPAD