EACH WEEK, WE highlight five apps that are worth downloading for your smartphone and tablet. There are a lot of apps released on a daily basis, but not all of them are worth paying attention to.
This week includes a keyboard app everyone should have, a indie platformer that’s all about gravity, and the only password app you ever need.
SwiftKey
For: Android
Cost: Free (with in-app purchases)
- Swiftkey has been around for quite a while, but since it’s was recently made free, it’s now gone from handy to must-have.
- For those not sure what it’s about, Swiftkey is a vastly improved version of the traditional Android keyboard, making it faster and easier to type whatever you want.
- Typing is done through a mixture of swipes and predictive text. Swiping between letters will predict what you want to say. The more you use it, the smarter it gets.
- The only flaw is it’s only for Android. iPhone users will have to wait for iOS 8 to arrive before they can download it. Also certain keyboards are available through in-app purchases, but that’s only if you want a particular style of keyboard.
- Honestly, download it and marvel at how fast it makes typing.
Angry Birds Epic
For: iOS, Android, Windows Phone
Cost: Free
- Chances are you fall into two camps with Angry Birds, either you enjoy them or you cannot stand the series. If you fall into the latter camp, you should move on.
- Angry Birds Epic is an RPG in its most basic form. Progress through different levels, battle pigs, level up and defeat bosses.
- The game is controlled through swipe gestures. Hold down on a bird and swipe towards an enemy to attack. The result is a surprisingly fluid game with solid mechanics that caters to old and new RPG gamers.
- While Angry Birds Go! was fun, it was crippled because it insisted you pay to upgrade your car during later stages. Epic isn’t as bad. You can buy new items but they’re not necessary.
- Anyone looking for a nice, simple introduction to RPG games, or those who are Angry Birds fans should give this a look.
ooVoo
For: iOS, Android, Windows Phone
Cost: Free
- It’s fair to say that there are no shortage of messaging apps out there. You can practically find a messaging app to suit any purpose if you look hard enough.
- ooVoo is based around video chat, and allows you to chat with up to 12 people at any one time. A bit like Google Hangouts then.
- What separates ooVoo from other similar apps is its Cloudcall and ConnectionLock technology. What that means is you can make high quality calls from any device and fewer dropped calls.
- There’s also voice calls, watching YouTube videos with friends, screen sharing, and traditional messaging services to help sweeten the deal.
- If you’re beginning to tire of other video calling apps, then give ooVoo a shot.
1Password
For: iOS, Android
Cost: €15.99 on iOS, Free on Android
- You can always do with more security, especially on your phone where people would resort to simple passwords and PINs to protect their apps and phone.
- 1Password allows you to create complex passwords and store them so you don’t have to remember them. All you need is one master password to unlock it – which by the way, you should make as long as possible and include symbols.
- It also works cross-platform too. It’s supported on both Windows and Mac as well as iPhone/iPad so you don’t have to limit its capabilities to one device.
- Android users will be able to try out the service’s premium features for free until August 1st so it’s definitely worth a download.
- It’s a bit on the expensive side, but for what you get is well worth the price if you value security.
AgileBits / Vimeo
VVVVVV
For: iOS
Cost: €2.69
- iOS has been seeing a large number of great indie games appear on the platform. Kero Blaster, Tiny Dice Dungeon, and Monument Valley are just some great games that came out recently.
- Now you can add VVVVVV to that growing list. It deals with a simple premise. What if, instead of jumping, you could just control gravity instead?
- If you remember games from the Commodore-64, you will immediately love the visuals.
- A word of warning though, it can be incredibly difficult. Especially if you want to collect all of the shiny trinkets lying around. That said, the touch controls work really well for what is a precise platformer.
- Special mention must go to a fantastic soundtrack which really complements the already brilliant and clever level design.
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