GEAR OF THE YEAR 2009
Apps of the Year
Apple says that the 2 billionth app was downloaded from the App Store on September 28, 2009. To that, we
of the Mac|Life staff rejoin that we’re responsible for sucking down at least a couple hundred of that oh-so-
impressive number. Without further ado, we name our very favorite regular apps and game apps of 2009.
Jon Phillips Editorial Director EPICURIOUS: FOOD AND DRINK: This free app
iPhonizes all the fancy, world-class recipes found in
the Epicurious.com database, which in turn pulls all its
content from Condé Naste’s excellent food magazines.
Search for recipes by ingredient, cuisine, meal type, and more. With
pictures and user reviews of recipes, it’s become my essential kitchen
companion.
TIGER WOODS PGA TOUR: As my coworkers can
attest, I had been waiting not-so-patiently for EA to
release an iPhone/touch version of Tiger Woods. The
game finally arrived in May and immediately proved
my assertion that a really good golf game would have the potential
to be the best iPhone game ever. Great graphics, features galore,
effective touch controls. Sublime.
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Robin Dick Art Director MYPANTONE: Considering the price of Pantone
swatch books, this app is a steal at $9.99. Cool
features include virtual swatch books of every Pantone
color library, the ability to share custom palettes with
friends, and a tool that extracts color palettes from camera images.
It’s a wonderful mobile reference tool for designers. After all,
inspiration is a 24-7 affair.
SCRABBLE: I’m not a gamer, but apparently I’ve
become famous around the Mac|Life office for making
up my own words (I am still trying to convince Jon
that “horsey” is a generally accepted design term).
Scrabble is the ultimate word game, and it transfers very well to
the small screen. The only drawback? It doesn’t always accept
“Robin speak.”
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Ray Aguilera
Reviews Editor
iRENTMOVIE: For anyone who uses a TiVo or a game console to stream
Netflix content to his or her TV, a good iPhone app is mandatory.
Streaming devices can’t browse Netflix or add titles to your Queue, but
iRentMovie can manage both your Disc and Instant Queues, turning your
Apple handheld into a perfect Netflix companion.
PEGGLE: Part pinball, part psychedelic pachinko machine,
and perfect for touchscreen devices. The goal is to clear
all the orange pegs before you run out of shots. It’s
the simplest game imaginable, but creative bonuses,
great graphics, and a challenging physics engine
make it a game that I play compulsively.
