To win you must find the ‘Easter Egg’ that I have placed inside 1 of the 20,000(and growing) pages that you can find on the website. This Easter Egg is very easy to see, so when you find the right application you’ll know immediately. Like I said, 20,000 pages. . .this isn’t going to be easy but you can tell your friends about it and have them help you(I can divide the prize if you get help).

The first person to send me an email, and can tell me which page I put the Easter Egg on, wins the gift card.

Note – This is only valid for people who have a United States iTunes Account(Apple won’t let me send gift cards to other countries).

Could you give us some brief details about the 3 people behind iSteam?

GreatApps LTD has currently three shareholders:

1.Kostas Eleftheriou (25), is our Chief Engineer and Managing Director. He lives in London since last November. GreatApps LTD is his second business venture; his first was www.zulutrade.com.

2.Vassilis Samolis (22), co-founded GreatApps with Kostas last November. He lives in Athens and his day job is GreatApps. He is mainly occupied with the Business Development of the company.

3.Bill Rappos (22), is the Art Designer & Community Manager. He also lives in Athens and simultaneously with GreatApps he is a student at the National Technical University of Athens.

How does it feel to have your work seen(and enjoyed) by just under 2 million people all around the world?

We are really thrilled! In fact it is one of our greatest motives; we get emails from places all around the world. Here are our two favorites. . .

“You have saved my life, every time I want the kids to quiet down, I give them my iPhone with iSteam loaded. Thank you GreatApps”

“Everybody in my neighborhood asks to play with iSteam. iSteam Rules” Tom, New Zealand

How did you guys come up with the initial idea for iSteam?

iSteam is a child of a brainstorming session that lasted a week; just 1 out of the 150 ideas in our ideas.xml file. What made us choose to develop it, though, were the criteria we wanted our next App to fulfill such as development time, projected revenues etc., the most important of which being the viral effect. We wanted our next application to be so cool, that you can show it to your friends and immediately attract their attention.

To achieve the above we knew that we have to take advantage of all the technologies of the iPhone, but also concentrate on one that hasn’t been taken advantage so much. We wanted to blow on the mic for something to happen, then build an App around it. So, combining mic blowing, tilt controls, email and your photo library we came up with iSteam.

Funny trivia: iSteam’s first paper iteration was a windmill app; blow on the mic for the windmill to spin. Of course it would be called something like iWind, or iBlow.. Ok, probably not iBlow.. ;)

So we chose iSteam and after 7 days of developing, we submitted it to the AppStore.

Was it something that you thought would do well in the App Store. . .or was it almost a shot in the dark?

We didn’t expect this kind of success, but we were really confident about the idea. It was something unique and it had the viral effect we wanted. Plus, with the ability to save and upload user created images, baptized Steamies, there was the potential to create a community. Above all, though, it was something in the Kostas’s gut, telling him to push 150% for this idea.

During the development process did everything just fall into place? If not, what issues did you run into that you didn’t expect(or
some that you did expect)?

Since we had no previous experience developing for Apple platforms, there were a lot of issues with using a new framework. Kostas had to learn some of the basic operations and data structures from scratch, and on top of that the language (Objective-C) was also new to him. Soon after the first approach however, Kostas became familiar with the technologies behind the iPhone and from then on it was just like most development projects. An interesting note is that while many people are unfamiliar with Objective-C and Apple platforms, the Development Kit provided by Apple is top notch and very easy to use.

There was a lot of hype around this application before and after it’s launch. Do you regret releasing the application free for the first week. . .or do you think this actually helped out in the long run?

Oh.. Here is a topic that generated a lot of disputes initially. We believe that having the application free for the first week helped us in the long run. One might estimate that with 3k copies per day (that was the download rate during those days) we lost almost 15k $. But, from our point of view the installed customer base we acquired during the free promotional period was vital for the further success of the App. Those 1 million (free) users were our marketing, our advertisers! So, it is a move we don’t regret and intend to follow for our next applications too.

There have been complaints from some developers saying it costs too much money to developer applications on the App Store. . .but you’ve actually made a profit(and you’ve given it away for free on more than 1 occasion). Could you give some details on your expenses and your revenue so far?

As you can understand we cannot provide you with specific details. What we can tell you are some facts. iSteam has sold (until today) over 70k paid copies. The second free period ended last Sunday and it was also part of a promotional strategy. Finally, contrary to other devolopers’ claims, the expenses are really insignificant! Actually, that was a very important factor that convinced us to launch this business venture. To create an Application you need a Mac, a DevKit and man hours.

I believe your story proves that thinking outside the box is a major key in making a successful iPhone application. Are there any other key points that you would repeat with your future applications?

Yes one has to do other things than be open minded. We would definitely promote our future apps again through youtube, facebook, twitter and of course blogs and news sites. Unfortunately just the “good idea” is not sufficient. The AppStore is saturated with applications (over 17k today). You can easily get lost. It is very important to draw the attention towards your idea otherwise your chances are really narrow.

Will anyone(or everyone) be quitting their day jobs, and start to develop iPhone applications full time?

GreatApps is our full time job! Currently we are investing a significant share of our earnings in order to develop. We are currently hunting for programmers so we can run additional projects simultaneously. We have a lot of ideas, a lot of synergy and gradually we increase our productivity. We are also not bound to the iPhone; should an opportunity arise in another platform, mobile or not, we are sure to take it, we are flexible enough. Who knows maybe one day become an SA?!?

Can you give us some ideas or hints on projects you guys are currently working on right now or in the future?

We have already began the development of our next application which will hopefully be ready (for Youtube at least) in a week’s time. Unfortunately, we cannot disclose you the idea, what with the Appstore being such a competitive market. While we are not afraid of copycats, it is somewhat flattering being copied, grasping the initial buzz is really important. But, once its on, you will be the first to know :)

With iSteam’s success, do you feel the extra pressure to create something as good(or better) than iSteam?

Its true that there is a LOT of pressure. We fear becoming the guys that made iSteam and then disappeared. We fear people attributing our success to good fortune and not our hard work. We want to establish our firm as an important player in the AppStore and the only way to achieve that is with another success!

So, to answer your question: Yes! we have become even more annoyingly picky than we were when we chose to develop iSteam.

Note – I want to thank Kostas, Vassilis, and Bill for taking the time to do this interview. If there is one thing I want to point out, it’s that developing iPhone applications doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg. You don’t even have to be a big-name corporation to get the attention needed to ‘stand out from the crowd’. Yes there is a sea of iPhone applications in the App Store(over 20,000 currently) and yes it is hard to get attention sometimes. But developing unique applications(and not just another calculator) makes it so much easier.

1 – Pass the Gas
2 – iTinker
3 – My Prince
4 – Cow Tipping
5 – React
6 – Chess Clock
7 – FunCard
8 – iSplume
9 – Smart Sokoban Pro
10 – Contact by Number
11 – USA Factbook and Quiz
12 – Tilimi
13 – iQuestionaire
14 – Santa’s Gifts
15 – Bobblicious
16 – Mood Phone
17 – Petals Around the Rose
18 – CharioMan
19 – Super Quadra
20 – iPageRank
21 – Fractalate
22 – Bubblyz
23 – Talking Orangutan
24 – Excuse Me
25 – America Lite
26 – Crazy Chainsaw
27 – TrashTalk
28 – Dreidel Dreidel Dreidel
29 – The Brain!
30 – RulerPhone Lite
31 – Quick Tap Reflex
32 – Egg Drop
33 – homedo!
34 – TrackMe
35 – Save Kitty
36 – Tazer
37 – Ultimate Todos
38 – Bikini Blast
39 – Garden Keeper
40 – Halloween Picture Haunt
41 – Meal Diary
42 – AstroChina
43 – Free Emoticons
44 – Neon Flashlight

If there is an app that you want but it isn’t in the App Store right now then this website is for you. . .

App Conception – Where iPhone Apps Are Born

This is also great for iPhone developers looking for an idea for their next application.

Paid

LaTwit – $2.99

LaTwit isn’t the prettiest Twitter client in the App Store, but it is very functional. You can browse the public timeline, just your friends’ tweets, your personal tweets, as well as the @ Replies for yourself.

Like something someone said in the public timeline? You can go into individual profiles for that person and not only see their personal tweets, but you can also browse the website that they link to directly inside the LaTwit application.

There are plenty of settings that you can go through to not only customize the application, but also how it connects to your Twitter account.

Nambu – $1.99

Nambu is more than just a Twitter client. Nambu also integrates FriendFeed, Identica, Ping.fm, and Laconica right into the same application. You don’t get as much Twitter functionality as you do with LaTwit(like a public timeline), but your basic functionality across all services is all there.

Even though there is less functionality, the design is a lot better. You get a notification button above each tab showing you how many new messages you have for that specific service. For Twitter you can look through your friends’ timeline and your @replies(along with search).

Tweetsville – $3.99

Tweetsville was released by the creators of Tap Tap Revenge(Tapulous). It may be cost more than most of their other applications, but it is well designed and packed full of features. I think the only thing that isn’t included is a public timeline and @replies. Instead of those you get access to your direct messages, advanced Twitter search, and even the current trends.

I’m surprised that Tapulous would leave out those features, but maybe we’ll get them in future updates.

Summizer – $2.99

Summizer is an iPhone interface into Twitter Search. You can search(or browse) through either the popular trends or you can search for keywords of just everyday tweets.

You can’t send individual tweets out, but if you find something you like then you can do things like reply to that person, retweet their message, etc.

Twittelator Pro – $4.99

Twittelator Pro is the professional version of Twittelator(duh). In this version you get much more features and functionality than you would with the free one. Here you can go into the public timeline, you can just view your friends tweets, just your replies, and you can even create sub-groups from within the application. Adding friends to a specific sub-group makes it super easy when you want to look for tweets from just your close friends, family, or co-workers. This professional version also comes with multiple color schemes. . .it defaults to purple, but you can change it to black, grey, blue, or tan.

Twittelator Pro comes with all of the features you would expect in a full-featured Twitter client for the iPhone. You can send tweets, replies, direct messages, and so on. You can use Twitter Search(built right in) to search for things, or you can even go into Twitter Trends and browse through the hot topics currently on Twitter.

In my opinion, most of those features should be mandatory in a Twitter client, but my favorite one is the ability to add multiple Twitter accounts. . .and switch through them rather quickly. It takes a few seconds to load another account, but other than that it’s quite speedy. And you can have as many saved accounts in the application as you want.

Tweetie – $2.99

Tweetie reminds me of Twittelator Pro in some ways, but definitely has it’s unique design and different features. As you can see Tweetie uses the speech bubbles that you’re probably familiar with from text messaging on your iPhone. You don’t get a public timeline, but you do get your friends tweets, replies, direct messages, and even nearby tweets. Tweetie uses your current location and then searches Twitter for other users that are close to you, and then pulls up their tweets.

A great feature that is included in Twittelator Pro that is also in Tweetie is the ability to add(and switch between) multiple Twitter accounts. Add as many accounts as you want and you can switch between them very quickly and very easily.

Twitteriffic Premium – $9.99

Twitteriffic Premium is the professional version of Twitteriffic(the free version). This version gives you an additional them and removes the ads from within the application. But that is it, no extra features or anything. I love that it comes with ‘hint windows’ in case it’s your first time using the application(to help you learn what everything does). You’ll notice that there aren’t any tabs for replies, direct messages, etc. Instead you have to scroll all the way down to the bottom of the Tweets. You’ll notice that the ones at the bottom are a different color, which indicates replies and direct messages.

You can read tweets in 2 different modes, list mode and expanded mode. Whichever mode you pick, you will still be able to scroll through them. . .it’s just that expanded mode only shows 1 tweet at a time(but you can scroll through them that way as well). You have quick access to friends and followers’ profiles. . .but you can’t follow or unfollow anyone from within the application(dont know why). It does come with a built in browser, so you can view links sent in a tweet without having to leave the application(major plus). . .but you get all of these features in the free version as well.

Free

Twitter Trend – Free

Twitter Trend isn’t exactly a Twitter client, but more of an interface into the most active topics being talked about on Twitter right now. Monitor the Hottest, the Rising, and Emerging keywords. I’m not sure(it’s not documented) but I would assume it’s pulling the data from Twist.

Once you find a keyword you’re interested in you can go in and find the recent tweets from every person talking about it. You can even drill down into the account that tweeted it and look at all their tweets(which is pulled from the mobile version of Twitter).

Gyazickr – Free

Gyazickr isn’t exactly a Twitter client either. . .at least not a full featured one. Instead, with Gyazickr you can send out a tweet, and include a picture with it. The picture can be taken live, directly from the application. Or it can be pulled from your Photo Roll.

The image is then uploaded to Flickr and linked to at the end of your tweet.

Twitfire – Free

Twitfire is a minimalistic Twitter client that lets you send multiple types of tweets. Send text, photos, web links, current location(Google Maps), and @replies. That’s as far as it goes though, you can only send out messages. . .there’s no reading in this application.

Twitfire is a simple free application that you can open up to quickly send out tweets so that you can go about your business.

JustUpdate

I wish I could fully review JustUpdate, but every time I open the application it closes. When it first opens up it asks if you want to participate in some statistical collection project. I declined this, but I guess I shouldn’t have. Ater that it asks you for your username and password for Twitter. I get half way through the password and the application quits.

Now each time I open it up I get a blank signout/post screen, the screen dims, and then it quits again. I restarted the iPhone, but I still get the same issue. At least I didn’t waste any money on it though(since it’s a free application).

LifeCast

LifeCast is not just a Twitter client(albeit a simple one), but it’s also a client that you can use to post content on multiple platforms(wordpress, blogger, etc). Since LifeCast was made to send messages(and photos), you won’t be able to read tweets that your friends send(including @replies) or direct messages. So it’s sort of like Twitfire, in which you can only send tweets(with the added functionality of the other platforms).

Twitterlink

Twitterlink is just that, a way to send links(shortened URLs) with some text to your Twitter account. The process isn’t as straightforward as you might like, but then again it’s not that hard either. After installing the application you have to add a bookmarklet. This is easy to find, you should see the option when you fill out your username and password. This takes you to a page and you need to add that page as a bookmark. . .then go into your bookmarks and deletion a portion of the url(everything before the word ‘javascript’).

Once that is saved, anytime you’re browsing a website you can go to your bookmarks, select the new bookmark and MobileSafari will close. Then Twitterlink will open up and grab the shortened URL. Now you can just type up your tweet and press send. The application will then close and take you back to MobileSafari(to the same page that you just tweeted).

Tweeter

Tweeter is a output only Twitter client. If you have something quick to say then you can just open up the application, quickly type in what you want. . .and then tweet away. It comes with 2 different color schemes to choose from(light and dark) so if you normally use it in the dark you can use the dark theme so it’s not so bright all the time. They also have an option to setup a ‘footer’ for your tweets. This way a predetermined footer can be setup and added to the end of each tweet you send out from within the application(like the email application adds ‘sent from my iPhone’ at the bottom of your emails.

TwitterFon

TwitterFon is the best free iPhone Twitter client(in my opinion). The design isn’t something special, but it has a bunch of features that aren’t normally present in the other free Twitter clients for the iPhone. You can monitor your friends’ tweets, replies, direct messages, trends, nearby tweets and even search through Twitter.

You don’t get themes like you do in Twitteriffic Premium or Twittelator Pro. . .but all of the features are there. . .and that’s what matters. It even comes with a browser inside the application so you can look at links sent in tweets from your friends. It’s nice to have all of those features wrapped into one client(and it’s free too).

Twitteriffic

Twitteriffic is the free version of Twitteriffic Premium(duh), but the best part is that this version isn’t missing any features. In case you’re not up for paying 10 dollars for an Twitter client for the iPhone. . .you can still get all the great features.

The only difference between this version and the premium version is that this one doesn’t have the ‘additional theme’, and this one also comes with advertisements implanted in the stream of tweets.

Twittelator

This is the free version of Twittelator Pro(shown above). In this version you get less features, but still it’s a great overall Twitter client. You get all of the ‘core features’ that you would think come along with a Twitter client. It’s things like nearby search, copy/paste, etc that you don’t get.

In the free version you don’t get the extra themes, you can’t have multiple accounts, it doesn’t display photos in tweets, no copy/paste for tweets, no Twitter trends, and you don’t have the ability to search for Twitter users nearby.

Twittervision

Twittervision is less of a Twitter client but more of a Twitter utility. Instead of sending tweets with this application you can only read tweets here. But instead of the traditional way of seeing tweets you get to see them on a map of the entire world. If a tweet comes in from Spain, the map moves to that region and shows you what that person just tweeted. The same goes if the tweet comes from Atlanta or New York. . .you get to visually see where they come from.

It also comes with a great translator in case you can’t read a tweet that comes from Japan, China, etc. Just double tap on a tween and you’ll notice that it translates it live and outputs the text in English. In a crowded market of Twitter clients for the iPhone and iPod Touch(19 different apps). . .this one is the only of it’s kind.

Twinkle

Twinkle was the first Twitter client for the iPhone to utilize the the location feature and begin to boast about that feature. Sadly Tapulous has added some sort of restriction that requires you to signup with a Taplous account. It’s not a huge deal but it still makes you wonder why they feel like they need to keep your email address. I’m sure they just use it to boast some stats but it just makes you think twice. There isn’t a feature in Twinkle that isn’t in some of the other applications to make you think like you have to use this one.

Conclusion

Out of 19 Twitter applications which one do you use? These were the only Twitter clients that I could find, but with how spotty iTunes search can be, I wouldn’t be surprised if there were a few others. After using all of these applications(30 dollars worth), I have to say I like Twittelator Pro the best. It has all the feature that I would want in a Twitter client on my iPhone, and it maintains the minimalistic feel to it(which I like).

It’s been known that holding the #1 spot of the paid apps list can earn something like 13,000 dollars a day(before Apple’s 30% cut). And if you’re lucky enough to have that spot during a big holiday(like Christmas), then you can almost triple that amount(selling 38,927 copies).

I’ve been sort of ashamed since December 22nd when iFart Mobile claimed the top of the throne. I thought it was all based around hype that would soon diminish. . .but sadly I was wrong. For 22 days iFart Mobile set atop the Best Paid iPhone Apps list, until today. Now we have a new application called iShoot which when you break it down is a clone is the famous PC game, Scorched Earth.

There are some differences, beyond the game, that I would like to mention real quick. iShoot was released back in October(the 19th to be exact), so it’s like we have a sleeping giant on our hands. Another key different in Ethan’s approach is that he didn’t have to drop the price to get that #1 spot. I’m not saying that Joel had to drop iFart Mobile down to the $0.99 price point to get to the top, but he did. This means with that Ethan will be making 3 times the amount that Joel made(assuming he’s selling 13k units per day as well). It will be interesting to watch this and see how the 3 dollar price point will affect how long iShoot remains in the #1 spot.

So, as I said. . .iShoot is like Scorched Earth. The goal is to destroy all of the other tanks on the screen. You can play against the computer. . .or you can play with your friends(up to 3 others). The downfall is that there isn’t an online mode, or even wifi mode. So you have to pass your iPhone or iPod Touch to the next person when it’s their turn.

iShoot comes with 25 different weapons to choose, from shells, missiles, cluster bombs, and even nuclear weapons. This are very similar to the weapons used in the games you remember, no matter which versions you played.

Digg

There have been attempts at bringing Digg to the iPhone and iPod Touch(Shovel), but we have yet to see an official application from Digg. Since Shovel uses the the Digg API, you can’t leave comments, or digg/bury the submissions either. It just seems odd to me that for a website that made an iPhone version(http://digg.com/iphone) so early, that there isn’t a native application yet.

IMDB

IMDB is one of those websites like wikipedia that I constantly go to for referencing movies, actors, quotes, trailers, etc. There are like a dozen applications in the App Store that describe themselves like IMDB(about half of them link to IMDB within the app). I have yet to see an official IMDB application that utilizes the entire website. . .from search to release dates to trailers etc.

Google Analytics

Some of you might not use Google Analytics as much as I do(30 minutes every day) but the ability to check my stats from my iPhone is something I’ve been waiting for. There is an application called myAnalytics that will let you check the summaries for each website. . .but I’m looking for something that can get full in-depth for stats for them.

Firefox Browser

I’m sure this is probably a pipe dream, and we’ll probably see both copy & page and flash functionality before we can browse with a Firefox browser on the iPhone. Hell, I’d like to see the new mobile Opera browser in the App Store, if not for anything else. . .just so Apple doesn’t look like another AOL(the walled garden). Didn’t we learn something from that era?

VLC

The only reaosn why I would want this would be for divx/xvid playback on the device. 99.9% of my video media is in that format and I’m not the type to convert my stuff over just one for one device(even for the iPhone). There are ways to stream your media over-the-air(SimplifyMedia), but I would be happy tossing a couple 700MB movies on even it for a trip(it’s not like I’d keep it on there forever). Sadly even the jailbroken VLC app(vlc4iphone) doesn’t play divx/xvid well at all.

Air Freshener

If a Fart application can climb the charts and sell over $10,000 per day(over a week straight), there has to be a market for a virtual Air Freshener. I mean there were countless Mistletoe applications this holiday season(MistleSnow/JingleToe), why not ride the ‘fart fad’. The sad part is, submitting one of these now wouldn’t get approved for at least a month. So, by next month there will probably be something else in the #1 spot.

Woopra

This is another website statistics tool that lets you monitor your websites in real-time. The idea of taking out your iPhone anywhere, opening a Woopra application, and being able to monitor the stream of visitors no matter where you on(with 3G or WiFi). I normally use Google Analytics for my official stats, but the graphs that Woopra offers for average traffic comparisons(by the hour) are great. . .and that just seems like a perfect fit with the iPhone.

StumbleUpon

I have yet to see an application that lets me log into StumbeUpon, and browse from stumble to stumble(like I would with the toolbar). I have seen many applications come out with their own browser built right in(so it doesn’t have to exit the application to show you text), and that sounds like the perfect solution for a StumbleUpon application.

Bonus

With the iPhone being a huge market for casual gamers, I would love to see the Yeti Sports collection ported and released in the App Store.

Bonus 2

Thanks to the following digger(laserob) for this suggestion. A Sling Player/Catcher iPhone application would be great for anyone with a Slingbox. This would literally take your media wherever you went.

Not only are we in a recession but it’s the holiday season. After buying presents for your friends and family, there’s barely any left for iPhone applications. Thankfully, a lot of developers that realize this. . .and they’re actually doing something about it. Below is a list of more than 40 iPhone apps that used to cost money, but have been marked down in price(to FREE) for the holiday season.

1 – React
2 – MistleSnow
3 – ExcusesExcuses
4 – Tilt-A-Tip Action Tipster
5 – Mistletoe: Smooch or Smack?
6 – New Year Resolutions – 2009
7 – iFindWordz
8 – Buzzword Bingo
9 – iBenzinpreis
10 – Holidazzle!
11 – Shape Spot
12 – PCB Current
13 – PocketDyno
14 – Pocket Sounds
15 – Christmas Cal
16 – Taxi Hold’em
17 – myAnswers
18 – Christmas Lights : Festive Game
19 – OMG Cherries
20 – The Holy Bible King James Version
21 – Klockotock
22 – WhoopieCushion
23 – Square Jams Cube Puzzles
24 – JingleToe
25 – Christmas Gifts 2008
26 – iBear Timer
27 – Moon Map Lite
28 – The Brain!
29 – Done Drinking
30 – Kitchen Timer
31 – Fingeric
32 – Balloons
33 – TrackStats – NFL
34 – Topple
35 – What’s On TV?
36 – MegaSliderz
37 – TeleTone
38 – Amuck Christmas Hohliday Lights
39 – Executive Decision
40 – JingleJumble
41 – His Finger
42 – Jumbalu Zoo

click for other applications that have recently gone on sale

There is no guarantee how long this discounts will be available. It could be a temporary sale, or a permanent price deduction. If you�re interested, download them while they’re FREE.

Here are the Game Shows that I think could make great iPhone applications. . .

1 – Deal or No Deal

The concept is simple, pick some briefcases and then choose if you want to make a deal or not. There isn’t much complexity here, but with the popularity of the original game show it’s bound to do well in the App Store.

Note – I hear this is already an iPhone Application. . .oops! Thanks Digg!

2 – Remote Control

This is one of those game shows, like Press Your Luck(see below), that for some reason always stuck with me. Although it would need to be tweaked a little to make a good game on the iPhone, I think it has a cult following that would sell a decent amount.

3 – Family Feud

Not only did I grow up watching this game, but this was one of the games I played on the NES. It was a little difficult because you had to type in the exact words(and spell it correctly, which I didn’t do well when I was younger), but everyone loved the TV show.

4 – Let’s Make a Deal

Going even further back and Remote Control, Let’s Make a Deal was always fun to see the goofy costumes(like every day was Halloween), and watch people give up great prizes and lots of money for things like a goat.

5 – Name That Tune

While it would take a little longer to type out the name of a song. . .I think voice recognition could be implemented to make this one great game. This could even be divided up into separate genres(with hip hop, metal, pop, techno versions), much like what Tap Tap Revenge is doing with it’s NiN and Dance versions.

6 – Press Your Luck

With the touch screen, this would make a great game. . .and they could even do the Whammies going across the screen.

7 – Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego

Since this game was mostly multiple choice questions and then a memory-style finale game, this would be very easy to do with the iPhone and iPod Touch.

8 – Jeopardy

This would be a little harder to play, since you have to type it all out. But with voice recognition it would be a lot easier. I remember playing a Jeopardy game on my very first computer(Tandy 8088), so I know it could be done on the iPhone.

9 – Wheel of Fortune

Don’t forget about Wheel of Fortune! Much like the big wheel in The Price is Right, this would be fun to play on the iPhone with the touch screen.

If you’re a gamer, then you probably already know about the VGAs, which will air on Sunday night to reward the best console games of 2008. No matter what Apple wants you to think, the iPhone is not a gaming console. But, even though it’s not a console, that doesn’t mean there haven’t been some great games released in the App Store.

Below I would like to highlight some of the best iPhone games of 2008. With so many games(it is the App Store’s most popular category) it was hard to only pick 10. . .but here they are.

In Bugdom 2 you play as Skip McFly, a grasshopper where you encounter both friends and enemies while you explores the inside of a house and around the yard. The beautiful 3D animation and graphics get you interested. . .and the gameplay keeps you playing. They even have a free demo for Mac OS X users – www.pangeasoft.net/bug2

Enigmo was one of the first premiere iPhone games to be released in the App Store. In this puzzle game your goal is to direct the flowing water(or fire) to their own canisters. You get tools to achieve this goal but as the levels go on, the levels get more and more difficult. This is one of those puzzle games that when you first look at a level you think ‘there’s no way I can figure this out’. . .and then it hits you. With 50 levels to play through, Enigmo will keep you busy for hours and hours.

Uno isn’t technically a ‘board game’ but it is in the category. If you don’t know what Uno is then you’ll probably love this game even more than the people that played it when they were kids. You must play the same color cards. . .or a card with the same number(changing the color). If you don’t have anything to play you have to draw a card until you can. And don’t forget about the wild cards!

Wurdle is a completely customizable boggle/word search style game that is easy to pick up and play at any time of the day. You must spell out words by touching letters that are connected to each other(either up/down/left/right and even diagonals). If you think the grid is too small, make it bigger. . .if you think the board is dull, change the tiles. With an online leaderboard you have a goal while you’re playing(besides beating your own high score).

Real Soccer 2009 is a completely 3D soccer game that was actually released on other gaming platforms along side it. Critics have also said that the iPhone version is much better than some of the others. This is a game that soccer fans with an iPhone(or iPod Touch) have been waiting for. Over 150 teams, a dozen stadiums, and a real-time multi-player mode(over WiFi), it’s hard to get bored with this game.

With the success of games like Brain Age and Big Brain Acadamy on the NDS and Wii it was inevitable for clones to come out. I haven’t seen either of these hit the iPhone’s App Store yet, but we do have some great alternatives. Brain Challenge isn’t a cheap knock-off either. With original exercises, Brain Challenge gives your brain the workout it needs, and tracks your daily progress too.

With casual games flooding the App Store there hasn’t been much room for any of the major genres to shine. Thankfully with games like Vay and Chronicles of Inotia, RPG fans like myself finally get something to play. If you’re looking for an old school action RPG then look no further. With highly polished graphics and well thought out controls you almost forget that you’re even playing a game on an iPhone or iPod Touch.

The iPhone is a great platform for all types of games, especially strategy/tactics games. Fieldrunners takes the ‘Tower Defense’ concept, and ‘runs’ with it. With stunning graphics, it really lets you focus in on the most important part. . .the gameplay. Fieldrunners keeps you thinking at all times and makes you stay on top of your strategy. Don’t slip. . .because it could create a crack in your defense that takes you down.

Brother in Arms bring the 3rd person shooter genre to the iPhone and iPod Touch. The concept of a 1st person and 3rd person shooter for the iPhone just doesn’t sound like it would play well at all. Somehow these developers were able to port this PS2 game to the iPhone and do it in a way that makes it quite enjoyable. With an aim-assist feature, you don’t have to aim it perfect. . .if you get it close enough the crosshair slides into the correct position. Some think this is cheap, but with the controls it would be insanely hard without it.

This was one of those games that was initially released for the jailbroken iPhone and iPod Touch(at least the demo was). Trism takes the age-old concept of matching the same colors with one another to create a chain(much like bejeweled), but adds flavor to the game to keep it fresh. Instead of squares, it’s triangles, which actually add another layer of strategy to the game. Using the accelerometer to guide the other blocks into place, you can really plan out the perfect move. With 5 different game modes, over 20 achievements to collect, and the ability to pick up and play at any time(it will save your game whenever you close it). . .Trism is one of those games you’ll be playing for years to come.

Today I want to give you a sneak peak at a game from Tag Games that promises to

be the closest iPhone gamers will get to the GTA experience

The game is called Car Jack Streets, and is scheduled to be released in the iTunes App Store in January/February of 2009. I wish I had more screenshots of the game. . .or even more details of how the game will play. But I do have a couple of screenshots(thanks Paul).

I normally go through and pull just any application that has recently gone on sale. . .but for Thanksgiving, I went through and grabbed all the applications that used to cost money. . .but are now FREE to download.

There is no guarantee how long this discounts will be available. It could be a temporary sale, or a permanent price deduction. If you’re interested, get it while the prices are low.

1 – A Binary Clock
2 – Signboard
3 – Polyomino Puzzles
4 – Code Alpha
5 – Football Pool ’08
6 – iBanjo
7 – iTimeSheetLite
8 – Freedom Run
9 – TKO Ornament Rush
10 – Match Me
11 – Greetings
12 – Blitz
13 – Come Here
14 – Distance
15 – Shopping Aid
16 – Nuzzle
17 – My-Mood
18 – eWinter
19 – Reign of Swords Lite
20 – TapToDo
21 – SonicLife
22 – Space Monkey
23 – 2079
24 – Alcohol Aware
25 – Accountr
26 – SMS For Free
27 – 300 Bowl HTG
28 – Jump Meter
29 – Serpents
30 – Dotty Shapes
31 – Brain Blaze Spell
32 – ColorTouch
33 – Daily Quote
34 – Tangram Puzzle Pro
35 – Tangram Puzzle Pro: Holiday Edition
36 – OneTap Movies
37 – Zoo Box
38 – Fuzzball
39 – ClassicMemo
40 – One Tap Dial
41 – Silkworm 3D
42 – SpyBugRadar
43 – Chronometer
44 – Multi Stopwatch
45 – Classic RPN Calculator
46 – My Budget
47 – Luxury Timepiece
48 – Artificial Horizon 3D
49 – Memory Puzzle Game
50 – Twootball
51 – Daily Planet
52 – Debt Clock
53 – Clara

If you would like to be updated daily about iPhone App Store Applications that have recently gone on sale. . .subscribe to this RSS Feed.

This was so huge that developers, in their spare time, decided to come up with a system to distribute applications onto the device. Soon we saw Installer(and then later Cydia) released for anyone who jailbroke their iPhone or iPod Touch. This was so big that it spawned an entire niche(with a huge community) around it. Websites left and right were launched to not only help, but also showcase these 3rd party applications.

In repsonse, Apple not only ‘re-locked’ the device on each upgrade, but they also came up with a way to put ‘legit’ apps on the device. Apple’s App Store launched on June 27th July 11, 2008 with 500 applications. . .150 of which were free. As with anything Apple releases, the App Store had tons of press surrounding it(even though there had been 3rd party applications via jailbreak almost a full year before). Apple reported 30 million dollars in sales within the first 30 days of the App Store launch. With developers like Namco, EA, and even anyone else who wanted to. . .they were about to take the mobile platform by storm.

Since that launch day there have been some great applications to hit the device as well as some not so great ones. Companies have split apart. . .and individual developers are on the verge of becoming millionaires. This platform has proven itself to be a stable and viable business plan for anyone who has the time(or money) to develop for it.

10,000 applications later and the App Store is still going strong. A few hundred new applications get released every week, and even though some might say it’s becoming diluted, I feel that it’s just growing. I mean, developers will learn what sells and what doesn’t. Even though it takes time, this will cause the best apps ‘rise to the top’, and over time this will help the mobile revolution continue to grow.

There are hundreds of new applications be released into the App Store every week. With more and more success stories from iPhone Developers, there seem to be an increasing number of people trying to get their own slice of the pie. Because of this the quality of the applications in the App Store have started to decline(it’s inevitable). Below I would like to go over a few things that will hopefully help some iPhone Developers improve their apps.

Usefulness

A great goal for developers to have is solving a problem with their application. Having the ability to take your iPhone or iPod Touch anywhere you go is great. Developers should take advantage of this and think outside the box(or cubicle). A great example of this is the iNap application. Someone decided they wanted to sleep on the way to work(or another particular destination), like on a train, subway, or in a car pool. With this application he can do this, and have an alarm go off to wake him up right before he gets to the destination.

Data Portability

The majority of consumers hate the concept of a ‘walled garden’, just take a look at AOL. Users want the ability to take their data and do anything they want with it. Even if the majority won’t use it. . .including this feature will give you bonus points with the ones that use your application the most. A great example of this is the Timewerks application. This application lets you input all the data you want into it(making it super convenient for you). Not everyone uses an iPhone though, so this wouldn’t be convenient for everyone(like your boss, accountant, etc). Anytime you want, you can export the data from the iPhone into an easy to read HTML email.

Easter Eggs

One of the best things a user can experience is something that was hidden, something that they weren’t aware of. This is something that shouldn’t be documented and can be anything from a new feature, function, special ending, etc. The less people that know about it(at the time they figure it out and tell their friends), the happier the user will be. A great example of this is with the application Garf, tapping the logo 20 times unlocks all 20 levels of the game.

Versatility

Developers need to think that every single person that buys their application won’t use it the same way that you intended. It does make it more difficult for the developer, but the end payoff is worth it. This can be something as easy as adding a ‘landscape mode’ to the application. . .or letting users adjust the sensitivity of the accelerometer. A great example is the swarm of landscape email applications that let you type out an email in landscape mode, and sends the text to your email client. I imagine this will be added to the default Mail application in a future firmware update(it’s easy enough).

Integration

Integrate your application with as many other applications as possible. It sucks that Apple doesn’t let applications directly access other apps(and their functionality), but they do let you pass off data to a certain extent. Like if you have an application that has to do with your location, you want to use the stock map application(and the ‘locate me’ feature) as much as possible.

The Apple Touch

It’s easy to just throw something together and submit it to the App Store. Even if the application has a ton of features and a bunch of functionality, it probably won’t be enough to satisfy the Mac community. You have a better chance of the application doing well if it has less functionality but has that ‘Apple Touch’. Not only does it need to look elegant, but it needs to be intuitive as well. Remember the 1 year old that can use the Photos application. The baby didn’t need to read tips or instructions to learn how to use it. The baby didn’t ‘just know’ how to use it, but after 2-3 seconds he figured it out. For example the Classics eBook application makes it easy and fun to read a book on the iPhone.

Fair Price

iPhone owners understand that you(the developer) had to pay 100 dollars to get your application into the App Store. Most of us are more than willing to pay for your application. . .if it’s worth it. A great part about the high volume of applications in the App Store is that the competition will weed out the expensive apps. Developers will need to ‘stay on the ball’ or another developer will submit an application that does the same as yours and charge less(or even make it free).

Attention to Detail

This goes along with giving your application the ‘Apple Touch’. Attention to detail pays off big in the technology industry, from Customer Service to Software Development. Paying attention to the little things shows your customers that you care(as long as you’re doing things right). Great examples of this can be found in 2 applications. . .Good Luck and Old Clock. It’s nice to see a developer take the time to code the gears in the background(like in Old Clock), and making an application seem more real(like in Good Luck).

Stability

This should be a given and since the sporadic application crashes have stopped with the later firmware updates I wasn’t going to mention it. Sadly, this is still an issue with a hand full of apps in the App Store. It’s ok for an application to be free and have bugs, but don’t charge for unstable software.

Bonus – FUN!

With such a great device. . .you can have all the functionality in the world, but if the application(or more particularly, the game) is boring, why will the user keep it on their iPhone or iPod Touch. Challenging games are one thing, but when the difficulty becomes frustrating because of the usability, it leaves the user with a bad taste in their mouth. This happened with Super Monkey Ball and it’s super sensitive controls. Thankfully the developers listened to their customers and released an update that added the ability to control the accelerometer sensitivity.

So if there is 1 single rule that developers should live by. . .its listen to their customers(and potential customers). Most can be very out-spoken and they will tell you exactly what they want.

Some of you may have noticed me using a stand during my video reviews for past week or two. This was recommended to me by Cali Lewis of iCali.tv and she talked about using this stand in the video reviews. After saving up I picked one up(with an extra holder for the iPod Touch), and I must say I am satisfied with the product. Now when I do the reviews I don’t have to hold the device so it is always in the right spot while filming.

The price is a bit much but the quality matches the price. . . .I think a 20 dollar price point would make it a steal.

Click here to enter to win.

From The Pirate Bay to YouTube, Rapidshare to Google. . .and of course the newsgroups. There are more and more ways to download pirated iPhone Applications and more websites to learn how to do it.

Who is responsible for going after the 1+ million websites that come up in Google’s Index and host these cracked applications(or tutorials telling you how to get them working on your iPhone). Will developers have to ‘hold their own’ and have to personally go after their own applications? If so, then Apple is basically asking every developer to be the ‘piracy police’ for the entire App Store. With Apple pulling in so much revenue from the App Store I really doubt they will put it in their hands.

So I ask, what is Apple doing(or going to do)? I hope they aren’t too busy with Psystar. Then again, it did take Apple longer than expected to actually respond to the wohle Psystar issue. he App Store has over 3000 applications already and the longer they take to respond. . .the worse the issue will become.

Right now I think people believe that these cracked apps are petty and that Apple is making enough money($1 Million per day in the first month). But we all know that will make Apple pursue the pirates even more because of this.

At the very least I think it will be interesting to see how this unfolds(just like the first major iPhone virus).

Reboots are one thing but there has been more reports of users having to restore their entire device. I have had to do this. . .Adam, our reviewer, has had to do this. . .and many other iPhone and iPod Touch owners across the net have had to do this as well.

I just wanted to get a sample ratio of how many people this has happened to.

That means we have a lot of catching up to do, no?

Currently we have done just over 60 reviews since our launch but we are posting more and more every day.

Please continue to suggest applications to be reviewed. The more you suggest, the easier it is on us to pick which ones we should work on first.

There are 2 lists and Apple ranks the top 50 for each list.

Best Free App Store Apps

Best Paid App Store Apps

You can also find these links at the top of the page called ‘Top 100′. These lists are updated daily and show if each application moved up or down from the previous day.