18
May
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Last Updated: August 2nd, 2011

Earlier today, a tip about a new augmented reality game called HoopsAR hit our inbox. Since augmented reality is a relatively new and kind of cool subject, I decided to take a deeper look and go hands-on. Before I could play the game, I needed to print out a basketball "ticket" which serves as the game board. The phone's camera then scans it and overlays the court on top of it in 3D.

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If you're still a bit confused about how it works, don't worry - I whipped up a quick video hands-on in order to explain the overlay function and simple controls that make this game worth checking out.

03
Jan
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Last Updated: January 11th, 2011

Yesterday, we received an email tip about a new app called PacMap, which blends virtual/augmented reality, Google Maps, and... PacMan. Unsure of what to make or think of this potentially dangerous, but extremely original and interesting concept, I decided to test the waters last night by submitting the app to reddit. This morning, it was #1 in /r/android, which shows that thinking outside the box is always welcomed. Oh, and did I mention that PacMap is open source? Bravo, Stefan Wagner (that's PacMap's developer).

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The goal of the game is described by the author himself as follows:

Your goal is to eat all the dots.

02
Jul
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Last Updated: July 24th, 2011

A notification about the new version of Yelp just popped up on my EVO, and without thinking much about it, I gave it a whirl. Ohh, version 2.0 - it must be bringing new features, I thought. Indeed, it was. And I'm in love with them.

New In Yelp 2.0

Here's the list of the most interesting stuff:

  • Mobile check-ins
  • "Monocle"
  • Review drafting (though not posting)
  • Adding photos, tips, and bookmarks
  • A brand new look
  • A bunch of force closes, which I hope would be fixed soon.

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As you can see the last part mentions force closes which happened to me when I didn't have a GPS signal, but once you see the new features, I'm sure you will forgive Yelp developers for the time being, until they roll out some fixes.