Lab Mat Is All That: Talking 3D Lab Mat & Talking 3D Lab Mat HD

Lab Mat Is All That:

Talking 3D Lab Mat & Talking 3D Lab Mat HD

Yikes, I’ve gone and done it again.

I brought you so much in the Weekend Edition with my Top 12 books for young readers: part one and part  two.

But Monday hit and with Pump going back to school after Spring break and my reviews or appadvice.com (check them out here) I got pulled away.

But I had to pop in tonight to tell you about an app I reviewed in brief on appadvice.com.

It’s too good not to get in my own editorial comments 😉

Also follow me @sahgeekmom on twitter to fin either version for free in the next 48 hours!

Ok right to it:

Meet Talking 3D Lab Mat and Talking 3D Lab Mat HD.

• By: Mobobo
• Version: 1.0
• Genre: Creativie Play, Talking App, Entertainment
• Platforms: iPhone/iPod Touch & HD iPad Only
• Price: .99 for iPhone 2.99 for iPad.
• SAHGeekMom Rating: 4.5
• Kid’s Score: 5 Pump’s up!
• Recommended Age:  All Ages 4+

Talking Lab Mat is a breath of fresh air in the ever-popular “talking-back” app genre. It the first such offering to offer “real-time 3D animation, morphing and voice changing.

There is an IPad native and an iPhone/iPod touch version and there is a free lite version of Talking 3D Lab Mat you can try out once before you buy.

Check out this brief Promo Video:

Here’s how it works.

Like most apps of this kind Lab Mat, your hapless foil, will repeat what you say back to you in a funny voice. He also responds to touches. You can punch, or tickle him to evoke cute reactions.

But this vibrant HD app takes the fun to the next level: mix a potion in the lab and Mat will magically transform into one of 1000’s of different creatures.

And with each creature come a new voice, there are over 100, and new animated reactions.

To change Mat you just tap on the test tube icon, mix a few drops of whichever color chemical you like and tap the check mark. 

A new crazy character is yours to torture (or tickle.) This added dimension adds tons of replay value.

There are many more animations, voices and effects than in similar apps. So make sure you have some time when you try it out, because you aren’t going to want to stop.

Pump’s Points:

Pump was instantly enthralled, and has been creating monsters on his iPhone and my iPad for days now. He never tires of it. He wants to tell you that:

This is a really really really fun game. I like getting the scary monsters best but even the rabbit is funny too. I like when the monsters fart. That is going to make kids laugh like me.

What can I say he’s a seven-year-old boy…

Seriously though, both kids and adults can’t help but laugh out loud at the endless antics of this poor lab experiment gone awry.

My husband is no more immune to passing-wind humour than pump, but to be honest I hate these apps and anything that encourages my kid to make more rude sounds.

But this is the first and only such app that has ever entertained me!

I try to pretend I’m above such crass wit, but I can’t suppress my chuckles at some of the voices and yes, sound effects.

The clever variability of this app allows for endless creative possibilities. This video, by Neill the dev behind Mobobo of Mat performing Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody is hilarious:

Check out Lab Mats Facebook Fan Page to find out how you can star in a video soon!

Ok how clever is Neil? He told me it took the better part of the day, but he had entirely too much fun in the process.

You can see how this app stands apart from the pack. It’s more like dozens of taking apps all wrapped in one. 

The only thing missing from an otherwise perfect package is the ability to record your crazy creations from within the app.

A direct upload-to-YouTube and Facebook feature would be the icing on the cake, but the developer assures me these features are in the works right now.

As always the Stay at Home GeekMom tried to engage the creative Neil Pettitt was so affable and pleasant.

He is yet another dad-dev and get this. He changed the adds in the free version to wish his son a happy birthday!

And he promised if I remind him he’d do the same for Pump who will than be assured that this blog has brought him world-fame. At least in his homeroom, anyway.

If you have a kid or a funny bone you will find talking 3D Lab Mat monstrously good fun. Get it get the xxx price is more than worth it!

Want a free copy of this app? Follow me @sahgeekmom on twitter and watch for the next 48 hours. I will be handing out some freebies for retweets!

Thanks for reading, see you tomorrow with MosaicHD a geart edu-app for kids, and creative fun for everyone and if anything good besides an Angry Bird update happens in the App Store I’ll keep you posted.

Happy App Hunting

The 

Best iPad iPhone and iPod touch Books For Preschool – Second Grade: Part One

UPDATE: Nosy Crow’s 3 little Pigs now on iPhone – check for my review later on appadvice.com!

Dedicated to Stephanie Sopher and my Face Beavers

The Stay At Home GeekMom Weekend Edition

Best iPad Apps For Preschool – Second Grade

Best Books Part One:

Read Part Two: Click Here

Happy Saturday!

Tweet This!

This weekend I am bringing you the first of what will be an ongoing weekend series.

Please allow time for all the pictures to load, I don’t know about you but I like to see the inside of a book before I buy it. 😉

After so many emails from my friends and readers asking me for suggestions, I decided some Top Ten Lists would be a good thing to post for busy moms and dads who want a brief recap of the best apps for their kids on the iPad and soon the iPhone and iPod touch too.

At least I wanted to make a top-10 list, but there have been sooo many great offerings for young readers on iPad lately, the best I could do was a top 12.

These are in no parituclar order and please remember, these selections are for the youngest readers.

They all get the   

Also please know that The stay at Home GeekMom does NOT think interactive or digital books can replace a real book.

Of course I encourage you to read to your children and encourage them to read, any way you can.

But if you are reading my blog, I’m guessing you already do that! 😉

Ok here we go:

 

Brand new to Pad (two days old new), Moo Media/ LoudCrow Interactive (out of Vancouver, yay for Canadian devs!) brings the first Sandra Boynton offering to the App Store.

It is the Beloved The Going To bed Book for iPad and it is wonderful. Nothing from the original book it lost, but there are just enough objects to touch and animated effects to admire  keep any kid (and parent) entertained. Price: $2.99

I look forward to seeing the rest of Boynton’s library coming to iPad soon, and I hope Moo Media don’t change a thing in terms of presentation and interface. Pump votes for Barnyard Dance next, please.

Another new enrty into the kid-lit genre for iPad genre, comes from a new name, but an old and trusted source.

Former U.K. Scholastic Books execs have teamed up to create a great new independent  children’s book company called Nosy Crow.

The Three Little Pigs – Nosy Crow interactive storybook (iPad) may seem a bit pricey for 7.99, but a) it is still cheaper than most children’s book store offerings, and b) this is one heck of an interactive book.

The book is set to launch for iPhone and iPod Touch any minute so keep your eyes peeled!Look for my upcoming review on appadvice.com.

Nosy Crow has created an immersive reading experience that is never the same twice.

I took some screenshots, but they just don’t do the book justice; the video really shows it off properly so check it out:

Yet another wonderful BRAND NEW iPad book, one for your little monsters, was launched only yesterday, but as promised you can count on the Stay at Home GeekMom to get the freshest apps.

Monsters & Magical Creatures Guide For Kids By Ryan Novak, illustrated by moster-maven, Kari Fry, is a welcome new addition to the App Store.

This book is a whole lot of fun, and contains “factual” information about mylogical monsters and other magical beings, so it’s part book, part edu-app and all very appealing. Price: $1.99. Take a look:

Next up a preschool offering from one of my favorite publishers, Auryn Apps.

I hope you saw their incredible new book for slightly older children, The Little Mermaid -Auryn, if not I urge you check out my review for appadvice.com here.

It’s my favorite kid-lit book in the whole App Store at present.

What I can tell you is Auryn Apps is it a company you can trust. They care deeply about user experience and take user feedback very seriously.

OK, That’s enough about the company, the selection I picked for this feature, is a wonderful pre-school title, Teddy’s Night.

Once more Auryn creates a book that achieves the right balance between tech and text, and the artwork is wonderful. It is a tale about the power of Teddy Bears and is sure to be loved by anyone who still has one. (I do!) Price: 3.99

If you want to check out another book that strikes the right balance, The Rocket Book by Third Bird party! (is anyone else sensing an avian theme to kid-lit devs?) is a beautiful and original choice. It’s also a STEAL at .99.

This is another book I need to show you rather than tell you about so please watch the video:

Last for today, from AppleTree Apps, a company I don’t know at aI picked iReading HD – Puss in Boots to review because it is currently FREE. Get it fast though, it won’t be for long.

Based on this one offering, I can comfortably encourage you to check out any of iReading’s offerings (for all iOS devices) – they certainly have a plethora to choose from.

iReading’s  offerings are more app than book. By that I mean the text of these familiar tales is neither original nor especially well adapted.

That said, they are more than serviceable and I didn’t spot anything that would turn me off like misspellings, poor grammar etc, But they are not literature or fine art.

They range, however, from 1.99-2.99 for individual books and offer many multi-book purchases for as low as 4.99 and they cram these books full of fun features which are intuitive, engaging and entertaining.

In fact since you can even choose a blank page to color on, this is a pretty darn good drawing program for young kids too.

Ok that’s wraps up our first six books, but remember tomorrow I will have the second six for you, and they are all just as wonderful.

And keep in mind the books are NOT in order of preference, they are in the order the screenshots were taken!

Read Part Two: Click Here

Don’t forget to enter my contest to free FREE PROMO CODES for the amazing kid app – Make A Monster and Make A Monster HD for all iOS devices. I have plenty more to give away!

Did you publish, design or develop a book for iOS? Want a review here or on Appadvice.com. Please check my Developers Page.

Finally here is an abridged list of Educational Games and Reading App for ALL AGES, from sahgeekmom.com and from my reviews for appadvice.com.

• News Junkies Rejoice – Thousands of Newspapers Delivered To Your iDevice
• Take A Round-The-World Odyssey with 50 Greatest Photographs of National Geographic.
• The Future of Interactive Text and E-Books Rome: A Virtual History
• Unleash Your Child’s Creativity with Kids Corner.
• Apps for Kids on Dreary Days.
• Great New Creative App for Kids and Zombie Fans of all ages: Make A Zombie
• Surreal Slide Show With Salvador: Dali the Atherly Collection.
• Check out one of my first reviews of one the very best creative toys out there for iPad: Playtime Theater.

And if you want the tools to find the best new app store offering and the best deals check out my App-Stalking Guide – it will tell you everything you need to know!

Happy Reading,

The