Why Does Everyone Hate Facebook Home?

When Mark Zuckerberg announced Facebook home a few weeks ago there was nothing but good intentions and happy faces swarming the room. This long awaited announcement was supposed to show everyone how incredibly innovative Facebook could still be and that it was indeed in a standby while producing something new and incredible in secret. Well, the public waited and last week finally met Facebook Home. The reception has been shockingly negative. So, the question must be asked, why so much hatred for Facebook Home? After all, it is a Facebook product and everything Facebook touches seems to turn to gold in some sort of technology related Midas touch. Let’s get the breakdown of what went wrong.

The first thing to notice when looking at Facebook Home is the download page on the Google Play Store. This is the hub of activity for the app to every user that has it. Notably, the download number is quite high for only having been out a short period of time, and on a limited number of devices at over 500,000 installs. This shows promise, but when you look at how much app has been rated any promises quickly go to the wayside. It has an average user rating of between 1 and 2 stars. This is a shockingly low average for such a large scale advertisement backed app, by such a massive developer.

So what happened? Facebook is kind of not getting the point. To be innovative they need to change up what they are doing and what they can offer. If a peanut company just keeps repackaging their peanuts into different boxes and packets it doesn’t make the peanuts any better. This is essentially what Facebook does with their timeline reconfigurations and now with Facebook Home. It doesn’t change the same Facebook content and format that we’ve had and are growing bored of after years now. Just as the peanut company invents peanut butter cups, peanut brittle and flavored peanuts, Facebook needs to delve into it’s own new endeavors with NEW areas of content and new offerings to the public that we will actually like. Allowing paid messages to people and gifts to people means nothing in saving Facebook’s reputation.

So why do people hate Facebook Home? Pretty much because it is nothing new. It offers no new experience to Facebook other than having your entire home screen which could be filled with apps and widgets that you need with a constant stream of Facebook’s updates which you could just as easily get through an app.

Will Facebook Home recover from this awful start, not in my eyes, but only time will tell. If you can, go check out Facebook Home today and see what you think of this newest venture.

Google Play Store: Facebook Home App

ReachFeast: Contacts Search, Free for a Limited Time

Everyone with an iPhone knows that one of the fatal flaws of the otherwise amazing interface is the long scroll. There’s no worse time to suffer this issue when looking to get to a contact as fast as possible. The current scrolling uses specifically placed tapping which can be uncontrolled and filled with error. ReachFast Contacts is an app that has been formulated to directly combat this issue. In honor of its initial release, you can snag it up for FREE!

ReachFast aims to simplify and speed up calling, searching and adding contacts. It is an all around saving grace to the burdensome area. The way in which it differs from the traditional iPhone scrolling is in the tap traded for a pull. This allows the search to be done with a varying grade of a pull instead of a guess and check of a location tap. This not only makes it more accurate, but allows for an increased speed at which scrolling is even possible.

The other area in which it has been simplified is that with ReachFast, you can just tap the contact once to call and swipe right to send a message. This harkens to the shortcuts found on Android devices.

Although this may sound like a non issue with iPhone users I can almost personally guarantee that this will make your contacts and searching/calling part of your life faster and better. With the app being of great quality and free, go snag your ups today.

Source: ReachFast App for iPhone

[Image Credit: Apple iTunes Store]

Gameloft released the Iron Man 3 – The Official Game for Android and iOS

If you’re a fan of the metal clad Avenger hero, Iron Man, then surely the newest release of the third installment of the Hollywood film has your excitement brimming. Year after year without fail these Marvel superheroes have been breaking records and stealing hearts of the world with their action and excitement all while breaking box office records in the process. Now is your chance to get a taste of this new Iron Man 3 movie in the form of a game which has been released for users of both iOS and Android. There’s no excuse, unless you’re a Windows Phone user, to not go grab this game and have a blast.

Following suit with the immense success of running games in the past few months such as Temple Run 2, Iron Man 3 is going with the endless running scheme, but it does it in a very exciting way. The game doesn’t feel overdone or boring and allows the player to truly get immersed in an Iron Man world to chamber the pangs the angst for the third movie.

The game itself was actually so impressive I was nothing short of shocked and profoundly impressed by not only the graphics and gameplay, but the amount of interesting and edge of the seat gameplay involved. For a linear game based on constant progression it does what other games constantly fail to and stay good.

When a game is released for a movie it usually is just a rip off of another big title game repackaged into something that makes it easily forgettable and just another cog in the hype machine for the studio. This Iron Man 3 game is not only a stand alone good game, but does the great job of actually getting downloads due to the gameplay itself for the building anticipation of the movie.

Source: Iron Man 3 for Android | Iron Man 3 for iPhone

[Image Credit: Google Play Store | Apple iTunes Store]

Personal Assistant Indigo Now Available in Windows Phone Store

If you’ve never heard of Indigo you probably actually have, but may have just heard of it under another name. It is essentially the exact same thing as a Siri for iPhone. It is a digital personal assistant that is so smart it can do all of your tasks for you at every whim just from you saying what to do. It is a great app, but up until this point it hasn’t been available to Windows Phone users. Now they can rejoice in knowing that it is finally here, and they can have their own witty, personal assistant to do their biddings.

Although it has been released it is still technically in beta which means it is being heavily tested for flaws and inevitable glitches which may arise. Either way it is a great app and any of the falters it has along the way won’t be nearly as important as the help Indigo provides.

This is also a free download as of now since it just a beta. There’s no better time to get your hands on this app and upgrade the function and efficiency of your Windows Phone today. All at the command of your voice, Indigo is waiting to update your statuses, any social media, tell you jokes, check the weather, all of those things you can do, but would rather have someone like Indigo do automatically for you.

Source: Indigo App for Windows Phone

[Image Credit: Windows Phone Store]

CamFind: The Amazing App for Revolutionizing Searches

Have you ever had that thing you can’t quite describe to someone, but you have it right in front of you? That object you want to get another one of, but no one has any idea what you’re talking about? We’ve all been there and as frustrating as it is the struggle can end now. CamFind is an app that allows you to take a picture of virtually any object, receive information on that object, and give you web results on where to find it or buy it too. This is truly one of those apps that are changing the way we can find and receive information.

If you’ve ever had a run in with Google Goggles, an app which is in intention very similar to CamFind then you probably quickly realized that the things you were snapping pictures of in hopes to find were not correctly identified and maybe even mixed you up more than you were to begin with. CamFind is not only incredibly accurate, but in the real world puts Google Goggles to shame. CamFind is undoubtedly the way to go with the world of innovative searches on the internet. I have a feeling this app is going to become one of those household names where everyone has it and everyone uses it in no time.

You can finally scrap all of those time wasting and memory hogging search apps and widgets and keep your best new friend CamFind in the queue. CamFind might be a tiny bit slower than Google Goggles, but the way it returns accurate searches with relevant information you actually need is where the app truly has benefits that outweigh any possible negatives. Go try out CamFind today and you won’t regret it.

Source: CamFind App for iPhone

[Image Credit: Apple iTunes Store]

The Top 5 Best Android Brain and Puzzle Games in the Google Play Store

Gaming and leisure on mobile devices is fast becoming the main alternative use for these machines. Here is a list of the top 5 brain and puzzle games in the Google Play Store. These games will not only help you pass the time, but will test your skills and knowledge in the process.

Amazing Alex :

Amazing_Alex

From the creators of Angry Birds comes this great puzzle game called Amazing Alex. This is a puzzle game based around physics and everyday objects. You can use the objects to create chain reactions as they bounce, fall, tilt and crash into each other to create Rube Goldberg style links. This is a great game with over 100 levels of enjoyment for anyone from a child to an adult.

Where’s My Water :

where_is_my_water

With over 200 puzzles to solve this fun little cartoony app has hit the Google Play store by storm and has millions of downloads. You help Swampy the Alligator fix his plumbing issues so he can take a shower. The concept is slightly bizarre, but fixing the pipes and plumbing leads to a world of brain teasing and chin scratching adventure for people of all ages.

Devil Hunter :

devil_hunter

This slightly spookier alternative to the childish games we’ve mentioned before has the same difficult puzzle aspect to it. This large developer brings Devil Hunter to the Google Play store and offers a puzzle situation where you need to utilize the on screen devices to hunt the devil and rid him from the town. The combination and placement of various tools is what the puzzles are composed of and with new weapon and levels to unlock along the way this puzzle game will keep you right on the edge the whole time.

WordFeud :

wordfeud_free

This online alternative to Scrabble, WordFeud is one of those classic timeless games that people will always love. The best part of this app is that you can play with someone on the same device, or have people connected to you from around the world to challenge in a match. The ability to play up to 30 games at once makes this truly the only game you’ll ever need if you love it. Increase your vocabulary and improve your spelling while getting smarter with WordFeud.

Sprinkle Free :

spkrinkle_free

There aren’t many cuter guys hanging around puzzle games than the Titans from Sprinkle Free. These little guys come from the moon of Saturn and need your help in maintaing their massive water cannon. When tourists from Earth rudely crashed into the rings of Saturn a huge firestorm broke out and now it is our duty to help them put it out. Using the water cannon with shockingly realistic water physics you must help the Titans battle these blazes. Water isn’t unlimited so you must balance the mount you have with the precision of aiming and strategy.

 

[Image Credit: Google Play Store]