“The App Store is like nothing the industry has ever seen before in both scale and quality,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “With 1.5 billion apps downloaded, it is going to be very hard for others to catch up.”

With more than 65,000 apps available, we at App Alert, have a lot of apps to review and help you all find. We have a lot of new things in the works and plans for expanding App Alert with the every changing App Store. Expect a lot of new reviews and video reviews coming real soon.

Quickoffice is the productivity suite that lets you work in Word docs, Excel files and more.  If you are a student, business person, or even a casual user, this package of software is a must have.  The best part is that instead of costing $200+ like the version the “other guys” make, this one is only $19.99.

Quickoffice’s integrated application is the essential high-performance mobile office productivity tool for anyone on the go. Experience enterprise-grade Microsoft® Word and Excel® Office functionality with leading-edge innovation and unparalleled ease-of-use. Edit important files with confidence.

Reasons to buy Quickoffice vs. any other solution:

• Fast and responsive app performance
• No desktop client to install – simple browser file transfer from any computer
• Fully functioning productivity suite delivered today – no need to wait for Excel®
• Robust, rich features for power users such as two finger zoom
• No need to purchase MS Exchange® to email files from suite
• Very easy to use, intuitive UI – no confusing menus
• Easy access and sharing of files
• 100% data integrity – guaranteed Microsoft compatibility
• Responsive customer service – 24/7 support
• Simply works better!

FREE Updates (releasing soon):

• Edit 2007 .DOCX & .XLSX files
• Access iPhone email attachments from any email program – no need to have MS Exchange
• Full support for Apple 3.0 OS cut/copy/paste across supported apps and undo/redo ’shake’ functionality

Top Industry Awards

• Best Business Application – CTIA Wireless 2009
• Most Innovative Mobile Application – Finalists 2009 Andrew Seybold Choice Awards

Experts Agree

• “It’s our choice, bar none, for Office functionality on the iPhone.” – LAPTOP
• “It has an impressive suite of features” – The Wall Street Journal
• “Being able to share docs so easily via email and iDisk is a huge bonus” – TheAppleblog.com
• “This app is amazing… well justifies the price.” – AppVee

Updates in Quickoffice® Suite Version 1.2.0

NEW! Quickword® Features:

• Auto-correction (predictive text)
• Auto-capitalization
• Double-tap to create a period
• Adjust indentation level of bulleted/numbered lists and paragraphs
• Find text in a document
• Set paragraph alignment
• Easily view wide tables

NEW! Quicksheet® Features:

• Copy/paste cells, columns, rows, and cell ranges & formulas are dynamically updated
• Landscape editing
• Set/remove cell borders
• Edit font type & size
• Edit directly into a cell in portrait view
• Faster & easier way to build formulas
• Add, rename, delete, and reorder worksheets inside a single spreadsheet
• Set alignment within a cell

NEW! Quickoffice® Files Features:

• Bookmark last viewed position in non-editable documents (PDF, etc)
• Slideshow viewing of images in remote and local directories

Quickoffice® offers 6 powerful products in 1 simple application:

• Edit Word documents
• Edit Excel spreadsheets
• Transfer desktop files via WiFi
• Remotely access MobileMe® iDisk® accounts
• Email files directly via iPhone
• Mount your device as a drive

Quickword® – Advanced Word® Document Processing

• Edit & Create Word® files
• Intuitively cut/copy/paste text
• Easy to use double/triple tap for word/paragraph selection
• High-fidelity rendering
• Wrap text at any zoom level eliminates repetitive left/right scrolling
• Extensive text formatting; bold, italics, font sizes, font styles
• Confidently edit with auto-save & auto-restore
• Quickly edit bulleted/numbered lists
• File Support: .DOC (97-2003 Editing), .DOCX (2007 View), .TXT

Quicksheet® – Advanced Excel® Spreadsheet Editor

• Edit & Create Excel spreadsheets
• Professional-grade calculation engine
• Supports advanced Excel features
• Simply tap, hold & drag column/row headers to increase/decrease column width/row height
• Extensive formatting; bold, italic, cell background, font color, accounting, currency, decimals, currency symbols
• Double tap on a cell & drag to select a range
• Easily change inputs and recalculate
• Confidently edit with auto-save and auto-restore
• Switch easily between workbook sheets
• Insert new rows/columns
• File Support: .XLS (97-2003 Editing), .XLSX (2007 View)

Also includes Quickoffice® Files functionality for remote access, email, WiFi, and file management:

• Email local or remote files without having to download them
• Mount device as a wireless drive via WiFi
• Drag and drop files between your device and computer via WiFi
• Remotely Access your MobileMe® iDisk® account (separate account required)
• Create new folders on your iDisk account or device to manage digital content
• Save files to your iPhone for offline viewing
• View most common file types
• Easily organize, rename, and move files on your device
• Passcode protection keeps content safe

So, here’s the fine print.  There are only two real drawbacks to the quick office suite that I can see so far:

1)  I see no ability to edit incoming attachments.  There seems to be a development issue that won’t allow developer to access the right code to link it all.  I may be wrong on this issue, so if I am, please comment!!

2) There was a previous version of some of these apps that were named under another name.  Users are forced to buy a whole new version in order to get the new features on the new release as apposed to an upgrade.  I hope that the company supports the iphone well and doesn’t play that game.

Other that those two tid-bits, this is a must buy for all iPhone users.

This app is available at the app store for only $4.99.  I would gladly pay 8.99 for this app.

Anyone who has ever played golf as a video game can skip over the tutorials and go straight to tournament play. Let’s Golf is a well put together app that will entertain any golf enthusiast.  The game play is on par with any xbox or playstation version of golf.  The graphics are interesting and well made.  There are only a couple of minor suggested improvements, but the positives far outweigh the negatives.  

Official Description

Grab a club, take a swing, and pray for a birdie! It’s time to become a big hitter and start playing Let’s Golf! Play the first iPhone/iPod touch family golf game and discover a fun filled experience accessible to anyone. Choose from among the 4 customizable characters and play on 4 locations created in full 3D (Fiji Beach, the American Mountains, the English Countryside, and Scottish Lochs). Enjoy the Local Wi-Fi and Online Multiplayer modes with your friends or anybody in the world. Golf games have never been so accessible and fun!

 

63 holes in 4 distinct locations remodelled in 3D: Fiji Beach, the American Mountains, the English Countryside, and Scottish Lochs.

4 cool and animated characters customizable with your own style. Each player has unique strengths and weaknesses.

Show your friends who the best player is through Local Wi-Fi and Online Multiplayer modes.

Controls adaptable to anyone: Advanced mode plays like a sports simulation game and you can even add spin to the ball. Casual mode for easy fun and fewer bogies (but no, it won’t let you cheat).

 

Let’s Golf features touchscreen control, and while the standard left / right shot adjustments are present for lining up a swing, the game also allows the player to see a movable target grid down-course that represents an estimated touch down location.  Carrying out a swing involves a three-tap drill that finally gets it right.  Once the ball is in the air the player can swipe an onscreen control to give the ball some English. A very nice ball tracking / follow animation gives a satisfying sense of driving the ball down the course.

Additional Screen Views

Just a quick note about the best surprise in the game.  The multiplayer options are awesome.  There is an option for Hot Seat or Wireless Multiplay.  That means you can either share the iPhone back and forth between two people, or if you and a friend are both connected to the same Wi-Fi network, you can play each other.  I thought that was AWESOME!

Official Description

 

PocketMoney has been an leader and innovator in the mobile computing industry. Starting with the Apple Newton OS over 14 years ago, on through the Palm OS and Pocket PC.

PocketMoney brings all that experience to the iPhone, and builds on the elegance and power of the iPhone platform to give our users the best user experience ever.

• Track an unlimited number of accounts (checking, credit cards, savings, assets, liabilities)
• Repeating transactions (PocketMoney can auto enter your salary every other Friday).
• Budgets
• Email new transactions to your spouse to keep each other updated at all times
• Split transactions.
• Supports Withdrawal, Deposit, and Transfer transactions.
• Generate expense reports & pie charts.
• Auto-complete transaction based on Payee.
• Turn on multiple currency support if you are frequent traveler.
• Post transactions from MPG, CheckPlease and other iReceipt compatible apps.
• Enter a PIN to protect your data.
• Built in backup and restore over local Wi-Fi network. (Requires SyncDocs)
• Import and export QIF & TDF files over local Wi-Fi network. (RequiresSyncDocs)
• And much more…

We put the latest version of Pocket Money in the hands of one of our people that isn’t too bright.  don’t feel bad, he isn’t going to read this.  We had him create accounts, put in current balances, and enter some transactions.  As you can see above, he isn’t too wealthy at the moment.  The good news is:  It was easy to use, and now he knows where his finances really are!

Pocket Money is powerful for the platform you are using it on, and it is very easy to understand without being an accountant.  The catch, though, is that if you are an accountant, and you are used to a different platform you may not love it.  Pocket Money doesn’t allow for accrual based accounting (cash only). Also the export/email features are limited.  In the future, it is our hope that Catamount improves the export/email features.  Keeping that in perspective, this is a huge value for only $4.99.

Additional Screen Views

Graphics Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
Usability Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Originality Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Functionality Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Sound Rating: 0 out of 5 stars N/A

Official Description

Guide PAC-MAN with three new control modes. Dodge pesky ghosts by tilting or rotating your iPhone in Accelerometer Mode. Navigate through the mazes by touching the onscreen Directional Pad in D-Pad Mode. Chomp on dots with the swipe of a finger in Swipe Mode.

Munch fruits and other items for big points! Gobble blinking Power Pellets to weaken the ghosts temporarily and eat them up before they change back. Avoid Blinky, the leader of the ghosts, and his fellow ghosts Pinky, Inky and Clyde, or you will lose a life. Get an extra life when you reach 10,000 points!

In the full version of Pac-Man, you enjoy various color schemes and difficulty levels as you advance to the next levels.  It seems that all of the original features of the arcade game are present in this version, but, honestly, I can’t remember 1985 too perfectly.

Critics say the only downfall to this gaming experience is the method for controlling the Pac-Man. I say, it’s an iPhone. If you are so critical that you need the exact gaming experience as 1985, go buy yourself a vintage machine for $3000.

More Screen Views

The D-pad is the default control method when you boot the game, and I think that is where folks get mixed up. Because they can’t feel the buttons, and they take their eyes off the d-pad, they miss important turns and lose the game. Sure it would be sweet to have a joystick, but this is an iPhone, right?

Graphics Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Usability Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Originality Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Functionality Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Sound Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Sportacular Screen Views

Select Sport Screen

Game Stats and Scores Screen

Conference Standings Screen

Sportacular Navigation

Sportacular’s interface is easy to navigate, there is the main navigation along to bottom similar to the default ipod app.

News from more than one place

Looking for sports news and updates from the major sports news websites, Sportacular has a news section where it aggregates sports news from you choice of ESPN, Yahoo! Sports, CBS Sports, and Fox Sports. Click on a news event and Sportacular open the news into it’s own simplified browser, with a Safari icon in the lower corner, you can visit the page in Safari if you prefer.

Sports New Screen

Sport News Sources

Page Flip Reveal

Conclusion

Overall a very good sports score application. I wish there were more sports to choose from, which would help it appeal to a larger international market. And the news sources need more options or the ability to add your own rss feed. I find myself using the program to check my teams scores and stats. I think I keep this one around.

More Screenshots

Sports Stats Options

Sort Stats

Individual Player Stats

Player Stats

Team Stats

Sport News Browser

Official Description

Guide PAC-MAN with three new control modes.  Dodge pesky ghosts by tilting or rotating your iPhone in Accelerometer Mode.  Navigate through the mazes by touching the onscreen Directional Pad in D-Pad Mode.  Chomp on dots with the swipe of a finger in Swipe Mode.

Munch fruits and other items for big points!  Gobble blinking Power Pellets to weaken the ghosts temporarily and eat them up before they change back.  Avoid Blinky, the leader of the ghosts, and his fellow ghosts Pinky, Inky and Clyde, or you will lose a life.  Get an extra life when you reach 10,000 points!

This is the Pac-Man Lite version of the full version offering.  That means you only get one level, and you are done.  You can’t fault the makers for that, because we all know the lite versions are there to entice us to buy the full version.

Critics say the only downfall to this gaming experience is the method for controlling the Pac-Man.  I say, it’s an iPhone.  If you are so critical that you need the exact gaming experience as 1985, go buy yourself a vintage machine for $3000.

More Screen Views

The D-pad is the default control method when you boot the game, and I think that is where folks get mixed up.  Because they can’t feel the buttons, and they take their eyes off the d-pad, they miss important turns and lose the game.  Sure it would be sweet to have a joystick, but this is an iPhone, right?

Graphics Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Usability Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Originality Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Functionality Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Sound Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

How much does it cost?
Simplify Media for the desktop is free, and there are no hidden charges or spyware.

Simplify Media for the iPhone and iPod Touch are free for the first 100,000 people to download it. Thereafter, it will be $3.99.

I don’t know how many downloads there have been yet, but I think, when it does hit the 100,000 mark it still will be worth the $3.99, though free is a lot better right now.

The desktop application is free and is said to remain free. It’s available for Windows, Mac, and Linux and is simple to install. Once you’ve installed, you set up an account and you can invite friends to have access to your library, and in turn, if they accept your invite, you have access to their library. Unless your computer is asleep or not connected to the net, but hey their needs to be a way to stream your music to you, eh? Visit Simplify Media for more details

Simplify Connecting to Libraries Screen shot

Simplify Media Screenhot Buffing Media

Simplify Media Screenshot Media Account

Simplify Media Desktop Invite a Friend Screenshot

Simplify Media’s iTunes Description

Simplify Media lets you listen to your music collection from your home computer on your iPhone or iPod Touch. You can also stream music from up to 30 friends and view lyrics and artist bios.

Download the application from the App Store. Then, create a free account using Simplify Media on a Mac, PC or Linux. On your computer, remote music appears right within iTunes.

Features:
-Fast navigation by artist, album and genre
-Works over WiFi and EDGE/3G
-Easy setup; no router configuration
-Free for PC, Mac and Linux
-Free for the first 100,000 iPhone users
-Cover art coming soon

CNET named the Simplify Media desktop one of “the 10 best downloads of 2007,” and Blender added it to “The Best List 2008.”
© 2008 Simplify Media, Inc.

Graphic Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Usability Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Originality Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Functionality Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Overall Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars