The Big App Show Video App Reviews for iPhone [Review]

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BigAppShow


There are over 200,000 apps in the iTunes App Store now and everyone can agree that wading through all those apps trying to find the real gems is a big problem. We all muddle through somehow and find an app gem or two usually by word of mouth, a Cult of Mac review, or other means. I’m happy to announce that I’ve found another way to find good apps and this solution is entertaining to boot — Adam Curry’s Big App Show app.

I remember Adam Curry from the time he worked as an MTV VJ back in the days when MTV played real music videos and not much else. The rest of you might know him as one of the pioneers of Podcasting – especially for his Daily Source Code (DSC) and No Agenda podcasts.

If you have listened to the DSC long enough you’d realize that Adam is a man of many talents when it comes to being a VJ, radio personality, Podcaster, or ubergeek. So when I heard about Adam’s new venture, his first iPhone app, I had to find out more about it.

Adam uses the iPhone during a live app demo.

I had that opportunity today when I spoke to Adam about the Big App Show (iTunes link) it is a free app for the iPhone and iPod touch that is compatible, but not yet formatted for the iPad. It works fine on all these devices, but I recommend that you run it in 1x size on the iPad.

The app gives you a daily video review of an iPhone app and features apps that are paid or free. The whole idea is simple and elegant and worthy of being labeled an App Store gem. I’m surprised no one had thought of this sooner.

Example app review for Fat Booth

Adam becomes the worlds first professional AppJ and creates app reviews that are several minutes or more in length. He uses the app live on an iPhone so you can see how the app looks and performs instead of boring static screenshots. Adam uses some green screen technology and video output from the iPhone to create his videos. You see the app being reviewed and used live formatted to make it look like you are running the app on your own iPhone. The only difference is Adam’s voice over explaining it all in the background. If you like the app a link is provided to bring you directly to that apps entry in the App Store where you can buy or download it.

Adam works through the features of Fat Booth live.

You can suggest apps for Adam to review or you can share information about the apps he’s reviewed with your friends from inside the Big App Show. Tabs within the app currently let you see reviews from May and June a cover flow like interface lets you browse through the video reviews.

The currently released version of the app uses a badge on the apps icon to alert you to the availability of new reviews. Adam told me today that push notification and enhanced compatibility with iOS 4 has been added to a version of the app that is pending approval by Apple. I look forward to seeing that version, but in the meantime the badge works as a passive reminder that new reviews are available. Hopefully things will be a bit more pushy (no pun intended) soon and I won’t have to manually check for updates any longer. The video reviews can be viewed over a 3G or Wi-Fi data connection and the app runs on all of Apple’s iOS based devices.

If you are interested in Adam’s own personal comments about this app and how it came about then check out My First iPhone App – A N00b’s Story.

The Big App Show is a nice app that worked really well. Adam’s commentary along with a live app demo was definitely a lot more informative and entertaining than reading iTunes App Store reviews. The reviews presented by Adam were better than some of the app demos performed by my less talented individuals that I’ve seen on YouTube. The app is a pleasant way to find new apps since Adam’s presentation is top notch based on his years of experience in radio and TV.

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