(cjvitek is back with a review of Units ($.99 at the iTunes Store), a straightforward unit conversion app. It’s currently sitting pretty at #4 on the bestseller list, but does it belong? Read on to find out!)

On my old Treo, I had a great conversion program which I used frequently. When I switched to the iPhone 3G, I was hoping to find a similar program. The best I have found so far is “Units”.

Units is a conversion program that allows you to convert currencies, length, area, temperature, energy units, volume, time, speed, and weight. It has a simple, straightforward interface. First you select the mode you want to convert (say, currency), then the “from” units, then the “to” units. You select these options be repeatedly tapping on the “mode”, “from”, and “to” buttons until you get the selection you want. Then, using the calculator style interface, you type in the number you want converted. While I haven’t used the currency converter yet, the currency values are updated daily (automatically) or you can update them yourself manually.

The program also comes with three “quick launch” buttons that are customizable, so you can choose the three conversion types you do most often (including setting the default “from” and “to” units). In addition, it also has a “switch” button on the main screen, so you can quickly switch the “to” and “from” options.

A secondary screen gives you a little more control. You can choose the mode and units from a list, rather than repeatedly tapping on a button to find the one you want. In addition, this is also where you can customize the shortcut buttons.

All in all, I found this to be the best conversion program available so far. The interface is clean and easy to use, and it offers a wide array of conversion options. I do with it had a greater number of units to choose from. For example, while it does list liters under volume, it doesn’t list microliters or mililiters. Some of the units it does offer are useful and unexpected – for example, under temperature it includes kelvin (most programs simply have F and C). Eventually I also hope to see a greater number of units to choose from, and potentially more modes (for example, a shoe size mode would be great when travelling abroad).

At $0.99, this program is priced right,and well worth the cost for anyone who will find themselves in need of converting units on a regular basis.

Pros:

• Cheap,
• simple interface, easy to figure out

Cons:

• Repeatedly tapping to choose mode or units can be tiresome,
• some modes a lacking some units

All in all: 4 out of 5 stars.

Please note, this is the program from Crossroad Solutions. There is another program named “Units” from Ben Spratling. I didn’t find this one as easy to use.

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

Lightning Review: Units

benji starts off our iPhone App Lightning Reviews and scores a %25 off coupon with a review of Beatmaker, which you can find with this iTunes Link and buy yourself for $19.99. We have plenty more reviews coming, but don’t forget you can submit your own in the forums for you chance to win a coupon yourself — full details here!

BeatMaker is one of the first in a higher league of iphone apps. In short, it is a music creation tool that picks up where the MooCow Music “Band” app leaves off…and improves in leaps and bounds.

Read on for the full review!

You create music from a 16-pad sample library that that can be loaded with an assortment of provided sample banks ranging in genres from Rock, Electronica, Funk, etc. There are also a few custom banks provided by DJ artists with their own special sounds. You arrange the samples into 4-beat patterns which can then be sequenced into a song.

Most of your time in BeatMaker is spent flipping back and forth from the “Pads” environment and the “Sequencer” environment. Beatmaker lets you either record your pattern on the pads, or manually enter the “steps” in the “Step-Sequencer” environment accessed from within the Sequencer environment (this app has depth!). Once you create a few patterns and start to line them up your song starts to take shape and the music creation/beat mixing madness begins!

Trigger the pads and manipulate samples.

Create your song by placing your patterns along the timeline.

Go in-depth and place the triggering steps on time for better precision.

As you can see, rather than defaulting to the SDK’s included GUI elements, BeatMaker presents its own completely original interface and branding. Fly-out tabs are placed at the top and bottom of the screen to help you navigate the programs various menus and functions with a touch.

You can save your songs out as a wave file and use a soon to be released free sync tool called BeatPack to sync your creations with your computer.

What’s this!? A saving and file management system?…I must be dreaming…

Many will complain that the downfall of this app is the $19.99 price, to which I respond that you honestly get what you pay for. In my opinion, the best and most comprehensive to-do list in the App Store is Omni-Focus (also priced at $19.99) and the best music creation tool (and best non-gaming app) so far is BeatMaker.

A lot of the apps in the App Store are simple in their design and function, but they get the job done….And that’s OK. But I want apps that take mobile applications to the next level like the iphone took mobile phones to the next level. Many of the current apps barely surpass the functionality and depth of a web-app!

BeatMaker takes mobile apps to the next level and should set the standard for future apps…If your into music creation, I highly recommend it.

Ratings (out of 5)

• Look and Feel: 5
• Navigation: 5
• Features: 5
• Reliability: 5
• Overall: 5

Pros:

• Intuive
• Looks awesome, sounds great
• Lets you save your songs and is suited for live performance!
• Included RSS feed for updates

Cons:

• A little pricy
• Crashes every once and a while, but this could be a 2.0 thing and not an app thing.

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

Lightning Review: Beatmaker