Review: 100 Sounds (Kids Corner Review)

cjvitek

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Review: 100 Sounds
This is going to be a fairly short review. 100 sounds is just what you would think it is: hundreds of various sounds effects to play on your iPhone (more than 100!). They are organized alphabetically by name, and to hear a sound, you simply tap the name of the sound.

There are various settings you can adjust ? having a sound repeat, having a time delay, and utilizing the shake to replay a sound or choose a random sound effect. The sounds themselves are varied ? ranging from things like airplace, air raid sirens, and clapping to more abstract sounds like ?correct?, down, ?ouch?, or ditty. Some of the sounds are clear and concise, some are a little more difficult to comprehend. The previously mentioned ?ouch? for example, sounded like someone with a helium voice saying ouch in 1/10th of a second!

This app was billed as being fun for kids, but one of the problems I found was that unless the kid can read (which my daughter can?t do yet), there is no way to identify the sounds. Having some sort of icon or image associated with the sounds would be much more fun for kids. Also, some of the sounds could be stretched out somewhat. A sound effect that lasts less than one second (in some cases) seems sort of pointless to me.

It would also be cool to be able to view categories out sounds ? animals, human, speech, machine, abstract, etc. That might help clarify some of the more random sounds effect ? for example, is the ?fabulous? effect ? is that someone saying ?fabulous?, or is it some musical effect that is supposed to denote ?fabulous?. (It turns out it is the former, but that isn?t always the case).

The quality of the sounds are very good, although some of them were a little short (as I mentioned before). For the most point, I could make out what the sounds was supposed to be very easily. One nice feature that they are offering is that they will email you a ringtone of 5 sounds effects if you like. This is nice, since some of these could make cool ringtones (I don?t know why Apple won?t let an app make a ringtone!)

The last feature that I think would be really cool would allow a user to program their own sound track. Create a routine of sound effects (which effects, how long, et) that you could start and it would play over a certain length of time.

The breadth of sound effects included in this app are nice ? much better than the previous sound effects app I downloaded. But there are a few ?tweaks? that could be utilized to make the app better organized and more enjoyable. It is my hope that eventually 100 sounds will continue to add effects, even ones that may seem redundant so you can have more than one option for each type.

Pros: Nice array of sound effects available
Cons: More organization options, images for kids would be nice
All in all, the sounds effects app does exactly what it claims to be ? a repository of sounds effects. Some of them are fun, some of them are a little random, but there is a nice library available. There could be better organization, or since it is listed as a kids app it could have better identification for kids, but for general use this is a nicely designed app. At $.99, the price is not prohibitive and if you wanted to create your own sound track, this app can help you out. Four out of five stars.

In the interest of full disclosure, I received a promo code to review this app.

Rating scale:

* = No redeeming qualities or features, probably not worth it even if it is free
** = Few redeeming qualities, or is simply isn't worth the price
*** = Some good features but also some clear flaws.
**** = A solid app, worth the money if interested, a few flaws or problems or slightly overpriced
***** = Top of the line app, no problems or drawbacks.

Price is factored into the ratings. Ratings are lowered if I feel the price of the app outweighs the benefits/enjoyment/features it provides. Likewise, an app that is a good value for the money will have a higher rating.
 
Feb 6, 2009
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Thanks, and an update...

I'm the developer, so thanks for the review! I just wanted to address a few points:

1) We are now offering automated ringtone request and delivery! Using the button on the information page, you can have hundreds of ringtones emailed to you, 24x7!

2) Regarding short sounds, your review did not mention it, but you can loop and delay sound effects. So short sounds become long ones, and with the delay option you can play a practical joke where you hide the phone and it plays a short sound every 60 seconds, making it hard to figure out where the sound is coming from.

3) We're planning on categories for a future update. Now that we have HUNDREDS of sounds, it makes sense. In the meantime, you can use the EDIT page to drag specific sounds to the top, so you have easy access to your favorites.

4) We always knew that not having pictures hurts us not only with the younger set, but also in non-English speaking countries. But we made a tradeoff in providing more sounds, and using less space on the screen. We might revisit this. Also, I don't think we promote this as a kids' app, especially for non-readers, though my non-reading 4-year old enjoys it. It's almost like sound flash cards!

Thanks again and take care!
 

cjvitek

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Just a quick update - this is not promoted as a kids app. I just viewed it as such, so that's why I reviewed it the way I did. I figured kids are going to (generally) have much more fun with sound effects that adults are.

Chris
 
Feb 6, 2009
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Just a quick update - this is not promoted as a kids app. I just viewed it as such, so that's why I reviewed it the way I did. I figured kids are going to (generally) have much more fun with sound effects that adults are.

Chris

No problem! Just wanted to make sure, as we recognized that, with the sound names in English it limited our audience but also added some clarity.

The neat thing about releasing an app to so many people, is that you never really know how people will use it! There are some fun videos on our YouTube channel showing people using it in ways we never imagined! For adding sound to animated films, for training pets, etc.!
 

Tramain

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I just downloads this app and I think it is a great app and worth more than $0.99. I think it should get 5 out of 5 stars. You so many choices for ringtones and alot of cool sounds most websites will charge you per ringtones but they are free.
 
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Feb 6, 2009
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I just downloads this app and I think it is a great app and worth more than $0.99. I think it should get 5 out of 5 stars. It hives you so many choices for ringtones and alot of cool shoulds most websites will charge you per ringtones here it is free.

Thanks so much! Yeah, a lot of folks said we should've charged more, especially when we reached the Top 50 and also when we added hundreds of ringtones, but I just like the idea of reaching more people, not being greedy, and keeping a consistent price so nobody feels like they paid too much... or waits for a sale! I'll be writing about app marketing in iPhone Life Magazine, so stay tuned!

Thanks again, and I'll let you know when our next set of apps come out! (Our latest one was rejected by Apple, but we've made some changes so I hope that addresses their concerns!)
 

Tramain

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Grrrr apple LOL stop rejecting but you know someone is just looking for a app to sew apple over. I saw you read my spoofing app rejected post.
 
Feb 6, 2009
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Grrrr apple LOL stop rejecting but you know someone is just looking for a app to sew apple over. I saw you read my spoofing app rejected post.

Yep. Our last update was delayed over 5 weeks while we had to prove one of our sounds was licensed/original (which ALL of our sounds are!). And the only change in the update was better instructions, in other words the sound in question was in both the old and updated versions!

The new app's rejection isn't about a potential lawsuit, but if/when it's approved I'll be able to explain what the holdup was!
 

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