Balloonimals is a great new iPhone application developed by the folks at the IDEO Toy Lab. Here’s how the application works once you download it to your iPhone:
Blow into the microphone on your iPhone, and watch beautifully rendered Balloonimals spring to life. After the balloon inflates, give your phone a shake. Voila! With each shake, a Balloonimal takes shape. Soon, your Balloonimal appears ready to play. Now, pet your Balloonimal and see what tricks it can do.
You can watch the video below to see Balloonimals in action.
Strengths: There are a few strengths that make this application worth downloading. First off, its use of some unique iPhone features, such as the “shaking” of the accelerometer, means it provides an experience you can’t find anywhere else. In addition, the idea is a clever one, putting it into a category of application “toys” that aren’t quite games, but provide entertainment.
Weaknesses: There are two versions of the application, a “Lite” version that includes only one animal, and a $1.99 paid version that includes more. Quite simply, the application is worth downloading to play with once or twice, but there isn’t enough of a draw to convince me to pay $1.99. This is an important lesson to keep in mind if you’re planning on charging for an iPhone application.
If you’re interested in learning more about what our best practices are for creating iPhone applications, take a look at our presentation, A Marketer’s Guide to iPhone Applications.
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April 28th, 2009 at 1:39 pm
I was blown away by this app. (ba-dum dum)…