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Tangram puzzles are a fantastic tool when teaching young children geometry, spacial relationships, and art concepts. The iPad is a perfect device for completing tangram puzzles, so when the two are combined, you have a well-structured educational app that is a lot of fun to play. Perhaps that is why Swipea has created nearly a dozen versions of their very popular tangram puzzle apps, each with a different theme. The Swipea Tangram Puzzles for Kids: Houseware edition is identical to the others, but with a focus on household items.

The app's interface will take some time to get used … Read more

A tangram puzzle requires children to move and rotate sharp angled geometric shapes into a specific configuration to match a picture provided. Swipea has created a series of apps that makes these puzzles easier and more accessible for kids, perfect for a young child eager to use your iPad. In the Swipea Tangram Puzzles for Kids: Handy Tools edition (one of more than a dozen variations of the same free app), children will use those shapes to create household tools.

The concept of the game is very simple. Children are given a collection of rectangular and triangular shapes and must … Read more

Most users who are sports fans tend to visit Web sites of their favorite teams to view scores. These are reliable sources of information, but it can be cumbersome to open the browser every so often or refresh the screen to update scores. theScore offers a great new tool for the die-hard sports fans. This useful application, teamed up with a well-designed widget, allows the user to enjoy a unique sports experience.

The download time for this app seems to be non-existent. theScore loads quickly and instantly allows the user to browse through the application. The user interface features a … Read more

If you enjoy watching the incredibly popular television show "The Walking Dead," or just have a general interest in zombies, then you'll enjoy this application, too. The Walking Dead-Dead Yourself app allows you to create an entertaining zombie version of any portrait you have on your mobile device. It is disturbing and fun at the same time.

The Walking Dead-Dead Yourself takes a little while to download. The app is pretty big because of the many different image files and image editing aspects of the program. Once the program opens, however, the fun begins immediately. The app … Read more

If Facebook's default app isn't useful enough for you, this app may give you what you need. Atrium adds plenty of information to your Facebook feed, while still maintaining most of the look you're accustomed to. It's a pain to set up, but it rewards your patience with an interesting new way to look at your feed.

The app asks for permission to access just about everything your profile can do. This makes sense, since it's trying to be a complete replacement for Facebook's default app. It still might raise some eyebrows, though. Once … Read more

There is a huge volume of calendar and timekeeping apps on the App Store. The number seems to grow exponentially with each update of the App Store, making it nearly impossible to tell one from another. So it's rare to find an app like School Timetable HD that succinctly resolves the issues it was designed for without extraneous features, messy design, or buggy operation.

School Timetable HD is designed to keep track of your classes Monday through Friday, with notes for each class period and teacher. The app opens with a grid showing Monday through Friday and five rows. … Read more

Love a good guessing game? Guess Word, which tests your ability to match words to picture clues, is a simple but enjoyable little app. This game won't be terribly difficult for the average wordsmith, but it can be fun. If you like fast-paced guessing games, this easy app will probably tickle your fancy.

If you've ever played any Pictionary-like guessing game, Guess Word won't be too tough for you. The app greets you with four pictures that share a common theme. You'll get a pile of Scrabble-like letters to choose from that end up making the … Read more

The Swipea line of Tangram puzzle apps is impressive. These apps, including Swipea Tangram Puzzles for Kids: Transport, manage to take a very popular puzzle game that children have been playing for decades and transform it into an engaging, colorful mobile experience that takes full advantage of the features of the iPad and touch screen controls. While the lack of clear labels can be confusing as you get started, once the game is underway, your children will have a blast.

One thing that makes Swipea Tangram Puzzles for Kids: Transport so much fun is that nearly everything in them is … Read more

Every now and then an app is released that is clearly going to be a big hit with children, while simultaneously finding a way to grate on the nerves of the parents who are brave enough to download it. Music Maker Lite comes dangerously close to being such an app, providing just enough features to make a whole lot of noise, but not nearly enough to do anything productive with those sounds.

When you start the app, Music Maker Lite shows one option -- start playing. Playing the game consists of tapping one of many instruments. After tapping an instrument, … Read more