An intuitive and refreshing application used to track rounds of traditional golf or disc golf. It requires minimal navigation and finger taps to manage courses, players, and scores.This is for the golfer who wants to:- Track scoring just like a real golf card, but even simpler.- See trends over time using graphs.- Automatically calculate personal handicaps.-NOT rely on GPS to tell you which club to use since GPS is like cell technology… you have to hope you get good enough reception to help you choose a club or see the course from a top down picture.- NOT rely on internet access every time you go golfing.Features:- A quality and intuitive interface, so you’ll never be confused or frustrated. (See the set of screen shots).- For traditional golf or disc golf.- An amazingly simple-to-use course editor. Nine or eighteen holes. Nine different tee types to choose from. Three different par groups and three different handicap groups to choose from. If the course name or details are incorrect or change over time, you can modify it at any time.- Record the phone number, website, and street address of each course, so you can call (iPhone only) for a tee time, and look up course information on their website.- Up to four players per round. Each player can have a different tee, par, and handicap assigned to them. If a player’s name or attributes are incorrect, you can modify it at any time.- Automatically totals each players score and number of strokes above or below course par.- View the course editor or score card in a small, medium, or large font.- Stores all the courses and score cards that are entered so they can be reviewed, in full detail, at a later date. At any time, you can delete any course or score card you no longer want to keep.- Calculates the handicap for any player.- Displays graphs and a table of rounds for any player to quickly find trends in their golf game.New features are coming soon:- Tracking, G.I.R., putts, O.B., penalty shots.- Enhanced graphics.- Landscape mode.- Plus more.Note:Does not use internet access, so you can use this app anywhere without restriction.IS THIS APPLICATION NOT WHAT YOU EXPECTED?To continually improve this application, please send suggestions of new features. Our goal is to keep customers happy with this product.

Our Review:
Before we being, please feel free to visit our introduction to the following segments of golf application reviews that will be coming in the next few days. You can find it here. This should give you an insight on how in-depth we went to ensure we bring you the best perspective on what is best for your wallet. Hopefully, this can help you decide what is best for you and also encourage the developers to provide the best of what they do.

To start off, this golf application is probably one of the most evolved applications out there. Believe me, I literally have all golf applications that is out there (that is worth mentioning) and to this day it still receives constant updates of new functionality, new user workflow, etc.

You can rest assure that you will have the support of the developer(s) here. I will try to not get ahead of myself, but this is probably one of the best golf application that money can buy. In terms of support, design and usability, this will give you everything you need, in comparison to other golf applications.

What makes this golf application so great? Let’s dive into it shall we?

Look and Feel
I will start off by pointing out the weakest portion of Golf Card. That is, how the entire application looks. Don’t get me wrong, it does get the job done but if I had one suggestion for this application, is that, they should start refining the look of the application altogether. The cartoonish look just doesn’t match the amazing functionalities that this application has but overall, as stated, it will do.

Most users may not notice the look to be a nuisance; however, comparing the look with other golf applications out there, there are several applications that look very pleasing (for example, Teeshot). At this point, I will be picky about this because I would like to see this application as complete a package as possible. From my last conversation with the developer, this is actually in the works or has been redone already. This just proves my point above on how quickly “Score Card” has been evolving.

In terms of the workflow, it’s logical and entering data is very easy and goes without a hitch. This is without saying that there isn’t any initial setup. At first use, you do have to attain the course information through the “Course Manager” and set up a course that you would be playing at.

Here is where I am going to back step a bit and just briefly explain course availability. Most applications out there, when you need a course to be added, you usually would request it from the developer and a few days later, it would be available for you to use. Today, these golf applications have been around a good amount of time that, it is almost rare that you would require to request this, however, if you need to, they are there and available.

In Golf Card, they have integrated themselves with OobGolf.com. For any golfer out there, you should be relatively aware of this site and the plethora of useful information that you can attain from that site.

Essentially, with Score Card’s integration with OobGolf.com, the information available on Oobgolf is available at your fingertips within the applications. Theoretically, there is no need to contact the developer to add a course, no need to find out the slope rating, pars, etc. Every bit of information about a course is readily available on Score Card. You can even initiate a call to the course, find directions to the course, and view the course’s website, simply…pretty cool.

Before I had digressed, leveraging all this information into Score Cards just makes Score Card even more accurate and well maintained.

I should note that you do have the capacity to use the location base service so that it can detect the golf courses that are around you; making it simple for you to determine the course you are looking for or use the generic search to pull in the matching course you are looking for.

In the worst case scenario, if the golf course is not available (highly unlikely), you can request it from Golf Card or add it yourself manually.

Once you have added the course, you can then proceed starting a round. By completing additional information such as the amount of players, their names, and so forth, you’re on your way on recording the day.

Functionalities
Now here is where it gets fun.

Once you start recording your data, you are presented with the ability to either record your data in landscape or portrait mode. Landscape is the preferred method but the layout is relatively clean and easy to understand. You can adjust the view from small, medium, large, well suited for all the ages of golfers out there. Furthermore, what I like about this versus most of the golf applications out there is that Score Card presents the layout in an actual paper score card format (aka paper and pencil scoring), showing you relative information such as the Tee distances, par for each hole, etc. Similar to what most people are used to which gives you a quick glance of the overall course.

Don’t be mistaken, other golf applications usual work flow does show you the scorecard but usually it’s in a summary format which, at times, is only available at the end of the day.

How do you use it?

Very simple, entering data is quick and easy. You can add information…more or less, as necessary. If you want to just keep track of strokes, then you have that option, however, you can further keep track of details (putts, G.I.R. chips, clubs used, etc.). The overall workflow is well done in that everything can be done in one screen. If you swipe to the left, you can see the next 9 holes, including the little “Score Key” that was included to help guide you with regards to what all the little green/red dots and markings are as you record information.

Now, selecting the hole number on the scorecard allows you to determine your actual distance to the hole using GPS, which is essentially a range finder.

When all is said and done, you can email your score card or if you have an account with oobgolf.com you can upload your score. I think it’s suffice it to say that there are multiple ways to keep your score, such as , Stableford scoring and Net scoring based on playing handicap which leads me to the next section regarding statistics.

Once you have accumulated a good amount of recorded outings, there is one last section that is worth your time visiting and that is the “Player Stats” section. Here you can view each course performance with the ability to graph out your average score, par, handicap differential, fairway hits, penalties, chips, etc.

This section is probably the “above and beyond” portion that just tops the cake for this application.

Final Word
If I haven’t convinced you yet that this is one of the best golf applications out there, well then, to each it’s own. From my experience and extensive use of relatively all golf applications out there, I haven’t found a more dedicated, more inspired developer with his application.

Every week, there is always something that is refined, fine-tuned, added, to push the envelope of evolution with Score Card. There is so much you can do with Score Card that to list each detailed functionality, well, you would be overwhelmed. I have always believed in simplicity and Score Card hit it right on the nose. Of course, it also gives you all the complexity if you need it.

I don’t know how many golf applications I have reviewed that failed to tackle simplicity with complexity. It’s usually an either/or situation which makes the practicality…not so practical.

Suffice it to say, one of my biggest quirks when taking a golf application on the field. I ask one simple question. Will I enjoy my outing or will I constantly be fiddling with my iPhone/iTouch? With that note, Score Card is a perfect example of enjoying a day of golf.

Quick Take:
Value: High
Would I Buy Again: Yes
Learning Curve: Medium
Who is it for: Casual and Sophisticated Golfers
What I like: Simple and yet has all the complexities for power users.
What I Don’t: There can be a lot to be said of the design and general look and feel of the application. However, from my understanding or by the time you read this, some strides should have been made to fill that gap.

Final Statement:
This is probably the only golf application you will need. There are tons out there that may be suited for others but, in terms of, functionalities and information that golfers look for, it’s a one stop shop golf application.

If you’re not familiar with the hobby/sport/addiction that is geocaching, the concept is very simple — people go out and hide caches in the great outdoors, use a GPS receiver to find the coordinates of the hide, then post the cache on the Geocaching.com Web site. Cachers go to the Web site, search for caches that are near their present location, and then use their GPS receivers to find the approximate location of the cache. Once they’re done bushwhacking and find the cache, they sign the logbook, take and place trade items, and then log the find on the Web site.

A week after I acquired my iPhone 3G, I wrote a post talking about how to use the built-in GPS receiver and Mobile Safari to “do” geocaching. While the method works well, I was waiting and hoping for a much better way to geocache with the iPhone 3G. With the recent release of Geocaching for iPhone, it’s time to see if that better way is finally here. Read on for more details!

To give Geocaching a workout, I decided to try the app while I was on a business trip in Sacramento, California last week. I love to go geocaching in cities that I’m visiting, since it’s a great break from doing work and I usually get to know some more about the city and its history.

The application icon for the app is your first indication that this is the official Geocaching.com app, as it uses the four-color Geocaching logo. Launching the app shows you a nice trail scene as well as the standard Geocaching.com disclaimer, and you’re asked if you wish to let the app find your location (see below left). Since you’re usually going to be going out of your way to find local caches, you’ll most likely give the app the OK to get the location from your iPhone’s GPS. The next screen (below right) provides fields for searching for caches by postal code, address, or the special Geocaching.com GC code. You can also tap the “Search for Nearby Geocaches” button to find the nearest caches to your location.

A list of geocaches near your current location appears on your screen (see below left). The current version (1.1.1) of the app now gives you a filtered list that does not show any caches that you’ve already found. To do this, you need to set your Geocaching.com user name and password in the app settings page (see below right).

The list shows a surprising amount of information for each cache. The icon on the left side of the search results indicates the type of cache, most being “traditional” caches with a little plastic container icon. The difficulty and terrain are listed as a number from 1 to 5, with a 5/5 being the most difficult type of cache to find, in mountainous or dangerous terrain.

Groundspeak, the company that runs Geocaching.com, assigns each cache a unique code beginning with the letters GC. That code is important as a unique key for the cache, so it’s included in the list. Finally, the distance and direction to the cache is listed.

Tapping on a cache entry in the list opens up a detail page (see screenshot below). This page shows the latitude and longitude of the cache and the same difficulty and terrain information, along with links to a description, recent logs, and a hint. The description will tell you something about the cache or historical information about the area in which the cache is hidden. The logs will show when and how people found the cache, sometimes including spoiler information that make it obvious where the cache is hidden. Hints are sometimes riddles that make it easier to find the cache, if you can figure out the correct answer to the riddle.

Tapping the Map button takes you out of the Geocaching app and opens Google Maps. A red pin indicates where the cache is located, and the traditional blue pin and pulsating circle show your present location. I often use the Directions feature of Google Maps to find out how to drive or to a location near a cache.I find it annoying that I am taken out of the Geocaching app and have to launch it again to get back to the cache information. It would be preferable if the app used its own browser.

The Navigate button opens a compass screen with a red pointer aimed at the cache location. Your current heading, the distance to the cache, your ground speed, and the accuracy of the GPS location are all displayed on the screen. The pointer can be helpful in triangulating the position of the cache, as GPS accuracy can sometimes be off and by walking around, you can get a better idea of where the cache is actually hidden.

How does this all work in practice?

If you’re in a city or in a wooded area, you can pretty much forget about getting an accurate location. Where I was looking for the cache in Sacramento, there were both tall buildings and trees that were in the process of dropping their leaves. According to the Geocaching app, the best accuracy I was getting was about 156 feet! I decided to try again with a cache located in an area with a much less obstructed view of the GPS satellite constellation.

The second cache was near my home in Colorado. The leaves have dropped here, and the sky view is unimpeded by tall buildings. I used the navigate mode to get a red arrow pointer showing me how to get to the cache, and it did an excellent job of getting me to within about 20 feet of the cache (see screenshot below). However, the arrow was confusing me as it was whipping around the points of the compass, so I switched to the Google Maps view. Here I was able to see two pins — a flashing blue one that indicated my location, with a blue ring around it indicating the possible area I was in — and a red one for the location. With the Google Maps aerial view enabled, I could even see the trees near the cache location.

If you’re not sure if the area where you’re caching has a good view of the sky, I suggest trying a simple test — walk around the area with Google Maps pulled up. If your “blue pin” is consistently keeping up with your walk, your accuracy is probably pretty good. If it is the blue pin is a block away and just sitting in one place, or if it jumps around the map, then you’re out of luck and should either use a much more accurate GPS receiver or find another location to do your caching.

One more thing that Geocaching for iPhone can do is let you find the status of Trackable Items (see below). These are specially tagged items such as geocoins and travel bugs that are left in caches for others to grab and move to other caches.

This version of Geocaching is limited in what it can accomplish. I’d love to be able to claim my caches when I find them, instead of having to go back to my computer to log into Geocaching.com and do the deed. It would be cool to be able to use the iPhone’s camera to add photos to the cache log on the Geocaching website.

Should a hard-core geocacher give up his or her dedicated GPS receiver and move to an iPhone? No. I don’t think the accuracy of the GPS location is as good as some of the WAAS (Wide Area Augmentation System) enabled GPS receivers that you can buy from Garmin, Magellan, and TomTom. With most “real” GPS receivers, I find myself being able to find caches much faster. I think the iPhone is getting me in the general area, but not with enough accuracy to rmake my hunt much easier.

Between my comments about what Geocaching for iPhone needs and about the accuracy of the iPhone GPS, you might think that I’m totally dismissing the iPhone and this app as a geocaching solution. I’m not. I feel that it’s a good solution, and it can only get better as the app is updated with new features and the iPhone gets even better location accuracy in the future.

I’d love to hear what other iPhone-toting geocachers are using as their favorite geocaching tool. Is it an iPhone with Geocaching for iPhone or another app, or do you prefer to use a separate GPS receiver. Leave a comment below.

MLB At Bat 2009 for iPhone
Baseball app adds streaming audio, even on cell networks
Reviewed by Jason Snell, Macworld.com

For me, one of the highlights of the first few months of the App Store was Major League Baseball Advanced Media’s MLB At Bat 2008 edition (), which provided live linescores and in-game video highlights for every Major League Baseball game. Even better, an early-September update added live access to pitch-by-pitch details and boxscores, addressing the app’s biggest omission.

PRODUCT:
MLB.com At Bat 2009
RATING
COMPANY
MLB Advanced Media
PRICE AS RATED
$10
DOWNLOAD
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MLB releases iPhone app with game audio

Live game audio is great, even when the station names are confusingly reversed.
There was one other obvious feature missing from MLB At Bat, and it’s the centerpiece of the new MLB At-Bat 2009 app: live game audio. Baseball is a sport that translates incredibly well to the medium of radio, and nothing beats sitting back on a lazy summer day tuned in to a ballgame. The new version of MLB At Bat provides all the features of its 2008 edition, and throws in access to live audio streams of home and away radio broadcasts for every game. Given that MLB.com charges $15 for Gameday Audio access on the desktop, that makes the new $10 MLB At Bat 2009 a remarkable bargain. (While it’s true that the original MLB At Bat cost only $5, it was also only good for the last half of the 2008 baseball season, while this version will cover the entirety of this season. A free lite version offers scores and schedules, but no audio.)

This is not to say that, with audio access and pitch-by-pitch data finally available on the iPhone, that MLB At Bat 2009 is perfect. I found that it crashes occasionally, and the audio controls slide down over the top of the scoreboard, blocking the top of the list of games until you tap the Audio button to hide the controls.

The game audio works fine, though nobody will mistake it for a pristine radio broadcast. Some of the audio sources I listened to sounded pretty good; others were overcompressed and very difficult to listen to. The low bit rate of the audio does serve users of the cellular network well—I was able to listen to a game on a 3G network, though occasionally the audio would pause or stop altogether. On a wi-fi network, the audio stream was rock solid. It would sure be nice if a higher-quality audio stream was available for users on wi-fi networks.

The act of choosing which audio stream to tune in is more confusing than it should be. On opening day, the call letters of the team radio stations were matched with the wrong teams—for example, San Diego was listed as being broadcast on Dodger flagship station KABC, while the Dodgers were listed as emanating from Mexican (and Padres) broadcaster XPRS. There was no way to guess which was which without trial and error. Even two days after opening day, I found one game that claimed to have a visiting audio feed via the team’s TV station. Listening to a TV audio feed seemed weird enough, but when I tapped on it, what I got was the home team’s broadcast. I also saw several instances where only one team’s audio was available, which is a bit disappointing. There also appears to be no support for alternate broadcasts, such as Spanish-language radio.

But while I’ve got a few quibbles, this app is just about the coolest thing a baseball fan could hope for. I can listen to any baseball broadcast (including those from my local teams) on my iPhone, whether I’m at my desk, on the bus, or even mowing the lawn. Throw in quick access to the latest scores, linescores, pitch-by-pitch details, and live boxscores, and MLB At Bat 2009 is pretty much a no-brainer for any baseball fan who loves the game and listening to it on the radio.