Opera Mini 5: Android App Review

Personally, as a year long Android user I have to say that I am particularly amazed at how great the Android OS has come along in this past year. Wednesday morning, the company that has created the somewhat popular Opera browser have released their beta version of their new Opera Mini Browser for the Android OS. It has been known for quite some time how the default internet browser on android devices are lacking in substance. It would seem that Opera has stepped up and proven that their Opera Mini 5 Beta browser is a contestant amongst the few popular browsers on the Android OS such as the Dolphin Browser. Here is a video of my review of the Opera Mini 5 Browser for Android, hope you enjoy!

App Review: Sleep Cycle

Sleep Cycle is a brand new app for the iPhone that is designed to analyze your sleep patterns and make you feel more rested. It was created by LexWare Labs AB. It was developed using proven sleep science. I don't know about you, but anytime I hear that a product was developed using proven science I automatically think it's a scam. Then I noticed this app had four out of five stars with sixty-six ratings. At this point I was very skeptical, but I decided to read the reviews anyways. To my surprise, every review I read was good with the exception of those written by disappointed iPod Touch owners. This app doesn't support the iPod Touch, which it clearly states in the description. Since the app was only ninety-nine cents and it had so many good reviews, I decided to purchase it. I'm glad I did.

I've used Sleep Cycle for the past two nights, and even though I only got about six hours of sleep each of those nights, I've felt more rested each morning. I definitely recommend this app to anyone reading this who wants to have more energy in the morning. I am extremely happy with this purchase. It is well worth the ninety-nine cents. So, for those of you who are wondering,

Here's how it works:

First, you set the alarm. Then you have to press a button and lay the iPhone face down, next to your head on the mattress. The app then uses the iPhone's sensitive accelerometer throughout the night to determine which state of sleep you're in based on your movements. In the morning, the app looks for you to be in a light sleep phase within a thirty minute window that ends at your set alarm time. The app then wakes you during a light sleep phase, making you feel more rested and less likely to reach for a snooze button. The app also gives you detailed graphs for each night of sleep, so you can see how well you're resting. You also have the option to share your sleep graphs via Facebook or email.

Warnings:

Because Sleep Cycle analyzes your sleep based on your movements, it works best on spring mattresses. The app's description page even warns against purchasing it if you have a Tempur-Pedic. As I mentioned earlier, you'll also read in the description that the iPod Touch is not supported.

Basically, if you follow the directions you will be in love with this app. It is by far one of the most useful apps and most original concepts that I've seen in the App Store.

ThinkGeek Product Review

This is a review of the 4 Port USB Non-Slip Gadget Holder From ThinkGeek. You can find out more about the product by clicking here. 

iSaidWhat?! Review

Over the holidays, I stumbled across a very useful app for audiophiles, students and pranksters. iSaidWhat?! is an audio recorder, editor and mixer which can be used to record lectures or mix together recordings to create the illusion that someone said something they didn’t.

The first thing I noticed about the app was the icon. The icon was very clean and stood out from the rest of the pack. I immediately had high expectations of this app and I was not disappointed. I proceeded to open the app’s iTunes page and the next thing that struck me was the clean layout of the app. I knew exactly how to navigate around easily when I installed it. A nifty feature of this app is the input percentage meter, which allows you to choose how much the app can pick up. Although, this was not very intuitive. It should be there by default, rather than having to click the small grey microphone icon, which does not give a good indicator of its function. However, the feature is a bonus and not a necessity.

The next thing that caught my eye was the script feature, which puts a script for you to read from, which could be useful for song writers for example.

Now onto the main function of the app, which is the editor and mixer. I think it performs this function very well and it is very easy to use. It has two tabs, one for the recordings and one for arrangements of recording snippets. It’s very easy to cut bits out after a recording and easy to use it in arrangements.

Unlike some App Store reviewers, I disagree that the name is bad. I think it’s a unique name and will catch student’s eyes along with its icon that makes good use of the small square area. It could be improved to appeal to the songwriters though.

Complaints

The only complaints I have about this app are very minor. The first is that I should be able to delete a recording without deleting an arrangement that uses snippets from it.



The second is that the app should open to your list of recordings rather than the “New Recording” screen except on first launch. That’s it! Like, I said, these are not big deals and can be very easily fixed.

To sum up, I would recommend this app to pranksters, students and songwriters. For example, a student could use the arrangements feature to make one arrangement for a topic that was discussed in several lessons. This could be useful for many other purposes and I think at 99 cents, it’s a steal.

Update:
“The app opens in the recording screen on launch only if you didn’t close from within the snippets view, or arrangement view.”- my mistake
Also, as I suspected the developer says that “Arrangements aren’t seperate files, they actually read from the recording. Snippets are just shortcuts to a recording in order to conserve space and time.”

Modern Warfare 2 Multiplayer Review

I'm sure that most of you have played the game Modern Warfare 2 in some way at one time. I'm sure you had a fun time, but you were most likely on the multiplayer. This is a huge game with probably one of the best multiplayers around. That does not mean that it is a perfect multiplayer, nor does it mean that it is always fun.

Not to be mean, but Modern Warfare 2's multiplayer is like a kid with acne. You know that he is nice and cool, but you can tell that it has some problems. The multiplayer is this kid with oxy pads trying to wipe away the acne that comes back. It is like using patches to fix problems, but new ones will always arise. I do love this multiplayer, but some time I feel like a nerd getting beat up by a big bully. It hurts, and it makes you mad.

First, the spawning system is not terrible, but it does have a lot of issues. With the complex engine on Modern Warfare 2, it is hard to create a spawn system on these maps. I give them a decent grade because most other spawn designers would do a worse job. This is partially due to the maps limiting spawn points with structures and natural obstructions. It is not that big of a deal, and you will get over it. You might be able to deal with it if you are not a half bad player.

The next issue is camping. This is a scapegoat if you are doing bad, but some of the time, it is an actual problem. "The campers can be anywhere and everywhere." is a quote by the YouTuber Chromebandit. He doesn't have a problem with it, and these people choose to sit in a corner and not have fun. My point is, play how you want to play because it is just a video game. Sometimes, you can't avoid camping with Demolition. There is one bomb site left, and where else could the other team go?

These are just two of some of the major problems, but another highly disputed ones is the killstreaks. They are said as being overpowered, but I personally believe they are not a big deal. The stinger is an easy kill for almost any killstreaks, and with coordination, you can take down ac AC-130 in about 20 seconds. That is all I have to say on this because this is really dependent of you and your team.

Another issue is the overpowering of weapons, but this again goes back to that it is your choice how to play, and you can't force them to change. Unless, they are completely ruining the game, then you can have fun. If they are, just leave and go into another lobby, or have fun with your friends in a private match.

I just wanted to discuss the issues, but this game is fun overall, and I totally love it. It really didn't matter to me if it won GOTY, but it wasn't really my choice. This game is great for having fun with your friends or rocking it in a lobby full of randoms. It was built great for having fun, and I hope that you guys have a fun time with it.

I would have to give this game 9 out of 10 stars because it is an overall good game and Infinity Ward is working to get it fixed.

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