MEGAphone

... gotta have it! $550 here

iphone alarm clock

// awesome iphone dock // from here

LEGO Life of George

LEGO Life of George is an App based Lego game that challenges players to build what they see as fast as they can! This would be an awesome gift for anyone with Lego love.

lens dial

I'm sorry.. but I NEED THIS! and if it didn't cost more than the iPhone I would buy it lol.

iPhone 4S

// from here

Santa always knows exactly what to get me. Probably because its my mom & dad, and i usually drop lots of hints. If you didnt know, I'm a huge apple person - i love all my apple products, and now I love my new iPhone 4S.

I wasnt sure, it was just an upgrade from the 3GS - how different could it be? um, a lot. For one its GORGEOUS, it feels like you are holding a mini machine instead of a phone with its real metal detailing. I got the white (just like my previous 3GS) because theres something more futuristic about it, and i love to pretend i am from the future.

Looks aside, its fast as hell. On my 3GS I would wait for websites to load, and wait some more - now its like BAM!

The Cloud is also pretty amazing - Download a song to your phone and its also on your computer. Take a picture, and look at it on your iPad. amazingly seamless.

Siri and I are having a rough time getting to know each other, but I am hopeful... she is really good at answering all my questions with a city map (especially when i just want her to search google). But I appreciate what she tries to do for me - and she really just reminds me of Marsinta Drewbish from the Douglas Adams written PC game Starship Titanic. (I guess I'll just need to adjust her cellpoint settings lol)

me: "Oh Siri you are beautiful"
siri : "I bet you say that to all your apple products"

She's right, I do.

{APP}ly Yourself

Run, don't walk, over to Jenna Sais Quois to read my guest post :

5 Apps to help you keep your New Years Resolutions

4S

Santa is bringing me a new iphone for xmas. I am tres excited... like a total girl I am already picking out clothes for my new baby =)

which one should I get? I think my heart is closest to #05.

01/ over mountains $35.00  //   02/ Vintage Camera $35.00  //  03/ Flower Burst $35.00  // 
04/ DG Aztec No. 1 $35.00  //   05/ crystal $35.00  //   06/ tree triangles $35.00

nerd alert : the manhole

// download black and white version here

 So, last week in my Steve Jobs post i referenced the first pixels in my possession... and here they are.

Though this review covers the Masterpiece edition (which i did play later) - I played the original black and white version on my dads mac when I was 3. It was a long time ago - but I remember the lines, characters, music and sound effects like it was yesterday.

01/ manhole $12.00  //  02/  animal in your teacup $21.95  //  03/ anchors away $15.95  //  04/ walrus' hat $19.95  //  05/ dragons sneakers $85.00  //  06/ sailor tank $52.00  //  07/ mister elephant $89.00  //  08/ book of manhole covers $25.22  //  09/ teacups $10.00

Should I comment on how ironic it is that the game is now available as an iphone app? It is truly amazing to me that I can literally travel through time, back to the memory my dads old office in Arlington Texas, and play a game that I haven't been able to run on a computer in over 15 years.

// download the App

So let me preface this review with one important thing - this is a kids game (and I highly recommend it for children). As an adult, while it is clever and entertaining, unless you have a highly nostalgic association with this game you will not find it very mentally demanding.

You are confronted with a manhole, and a fire hydrant... click your way through the underground world and meet an array of characters including a dragon, rabbit, alien, penguin, rhino, elephant and walrus. figure out the shortcuts through the world and make sure to check all the drawers and corners for little extras.

I think the App was great - but if you want to experience this game in all its computer screen glory - it's available for PC over at gog.com for $5.99

5/6 Toes // Overall

1 // Graphics 

The original in 1988 was available originally in black and white, then color - and then the remastered edition. the fact this games graphics were addressed 3 times and each time they were extremely high quality for the time period i give this a high rating.

0.5 // Storyline and Characters

The characters are cute, and each have a little personality for you to enjoy. The storyline, well there really isn't any- its more exploratory than plot driven - which doesn't matter if you are a kid.

1 // Soundtrack and Sound Effects  

There is a definite soundtrack to this game - that changes with your location and the character personalities. There are also very nostalgic early computer sound effects such as "bonks" and "drips" that might take you back to your AfterDark years (if you remember that...)

1 // Length of Game and Price  

Since the game has no plot, you could argue it is infinitely playable. But you will probably run out of things to do after an hour or so. but for $1.99 i don't think I'll complain.

1 // Replay Value  

As the first game I ever played, this replay was priceless. If you remember this classic you won't be disappointed with another run through. I might just keep it on my phone for those moments when i need something to do, or a mood elevator.

0.5 // Puzzle Difficulty   

Um - there aren't any puzzles so I will base this purely on the little wormholes in the game - for a kid it will be challenging to figure out how to get where they want to go!

dock & dictation

My nightstand is used for two things; book storage and phone charging. Did I ever imagine the two would be combined into one beautifully functional result? not until now. Rich Neeley, the second you put up an Alice in Wonderland edition, I will be there.

Book Docks available on Etsy

last night never happened

have you heard about this!? wow where was this when i was a college student. it will delete everything that happened as far back as your stupid shenanigans need it to. So if you know any irresponsible social media weekenders - please recommend this app!

DIY iphone case

I know I've been a little obsessed with my phone lately - but this DIY needlepoint iphone 4 case is kind of awesome... especially the mario one

nerd alert : stargazer

this weeks nerd alert isnt about a game (Gasp! I know!) its about an iPhone app.

01/ constellation cards $40.00  //  02/ custom constellation necklace $59.00  //  03/ star dress $130.00  //  04/ blue windows behind the stars $40.00  //  05/ glass glitter stars $5.25 //  06/ origami stars $6.95  //  07/ shining star $20.00  //  08/ ursa major pillow $42.00

Its called Sky View, and it uses the camera on your phone, and your global positioning to show you the entire night sky. It tells you where you can spot the satellites, space stations and planets too.

If you want to know what stars and constellations are above you, point your camera at them and tap the screen. I personally like to lie in bed and look at the stars through the ceiling... (last night I fell asleep directly under Vega by the way)

And if you ask me... nothing says late summer like a night of stargazing.

6/6 polly toes

phone on tape

Thinking about purchasing this..... because its AWESOME. but the ultimate selling point is the cassette case phone holder

nerd alert : the 7th guest

You may not have been aware that Friday July 8th was Video Games Day... now you know.

In honor of the great holiday I decided to pay a visit to my overflowing (vintage?) game collection... where i found the 1992 classic The 7th Guest...

the 7th Guest was one of the first CD-ROM games ever released (floopys were on their way out) - even Bill Gates told everyone how cool it was... and let me take a moment to tell you about how hard i tried, over and over, to get this game to run on newer windows platforms. it never happened. i literally cried about it... not only because i was like 9 years old, but also because that's how cool this game was..

Nostalgia kicked in and i went to the internet to look up some info on the game, maybe read old reviews and look over the walkthrough ans screenshots to get some old memories going....

but what I found was better than I could've imagined - The 7th Guest has been made into an iPhone/iPad App.. to say the least I was thrilled, and immediately downloaded it.

01/ porcelain doll arms $12.00  //  02/ doll house $1,056.59  //  03/ brass telescope $865.80  //  04/ playing card decanter set $32.00  //  05/ skull cameos $3.25  //  06/ microscope set $40.00  //  07/ skeleton shoes $60.00  //  08/ chess vinyl decals $28.00

You find yourself in a mansion, with no recollection of how you got there... but you aren't alone... 6 (or 7?) other guests seem to be haunting the house, giving you clues and leading you to puzzles. The (rather annoying) owner of the house promises them their wildest dreams if they stay the night and solve the puzzles. but they don't know the truth about their host or what he's after (and neither do you - yet)

i will warn that this game is very frustrating. i know the last time i played it i was barely 10, but the puzzles are still hard. so hard there is also a free walkthrough app to help you out... there's no shame in getting a little help. but he (or she) who tames this title without the walkthrough will earn my eternal respect.

It took me the weekend to get through the puzzles, it was slightly difficult to get through the puzzles with my clunky fingertips on my tiny iphone screen, but I muddled through.

If you App people out there keep releasing titles as close to my heart as this, I may have to shell out some cash and get an iPad sooner than later.

5.5/6 polly toes - she says its the best $2.99 shes spent all year!

my iphone is stalking me

by now i am sure everyone's heard the latest scandal - iphone's tracking you everywhere you go!
honestly though ... this really doesn't bother me.

its a lot like how facebook and googlemail know where you were last time you signed in..
in fact, a lot of people like the security these things offer (well - they like to know if people in california are illegally logging into their accounts)

but isn't this all technically the same thing? sorry people - but if you log into an account - any account - from any computer in the world - your location has been linked to your identity. and you are fooling yourself if you think they aren't storing this information.

since this information isn't available in real time (unless you download this app to stalk people on your phone) i personally don't view it as that much of a safety issue.

so i guess i am wondering how much this bothers you? enough to turn in your iphone and turn off your facebook? stop using email?