Since others are giving insight into perhaps not the *best* apps but their favorite, I thought I’d make up a list of my own too. These applications are those that I use the most and highly suggest you try them out too.

10. Tap Tap Revenge - The first game I ever downloaded on my iPhone and I still play it very often. The ability to download new tracks and the recently added multiplayer mode make for never ending fun. If you aren’t familiar with it, think Guitar Hero for iPhone, where you tap the notes coming down the fret board to the music. Also see Tap Tap Dance which includes tracks from Moby, Daft Punk and Justice. [iTunes Link: Tap Tap Revenge | Tap Tap Dance]

9. Facebook - My previous phone was a BlackBerry and the Facebook app for it was horrible. It was very limiting and didn’t allow me to easily post comments or write on my friends’ walls. The iPhone version does those things and also adds smooth picture viewing for times when you’re trying to stalk someone on the go. [iTunes Link]

8. The Weather Channel - The Weather app that comes loaded on the iPhone is quick to use but very limited in features. The Weather Channel app lets you store favorite locations and instantly access hourly and 10 day forecasts. The killer features include daily video forecasts for your area, detailed maps and severe storm warnings. [iTunes Link]

7. Shazam - You’ve probably seen Shazam in iPhone commercials on TV. Simply hold your iPhone up to a song and Shazam tells you the title, artist, album and gives you iTunes and YouTube links. It wasn’t until recently that I realized Shazam’s potential. While driving in a friend’s car that was CD and iPod-less we had to resort to listening to FM radio. A particularly annoying but catchy tune had come on that we just couldn’t remember the name to - it was bugging us to no end. “Why don’t you pull out your suhweet iPhone and use Shazam?” said my friend. I followed his lead and voila, the gremlin inside the app told us the song was “The Way” by Fastball. When you need to know the song that’s playing on the radio or in a store or restaurant, Shazam is a must have. [iTunes Link]

6. Evernote - Its creators call Evernote your “second brain” and it is a hands down no-brainer to use this as your primary note taking app on the iPhone. Text, voice and picture notes are immediately synced between your iPhone, Evernote.com and the desktop application in Mac or Windows. Evernote also uses Optical Character Recognition to let you search for text in pictures you have taken. This makes its great for taking photos of wine or beer labels, or any other written document you might need for later. Most recently, Evernote added Microsoft Office document syncing which works particularly well for my college needs. [iTunes Link]

5. Yelp - Yelp is the premiere destination on the web for rating and reviewing restaurants, stores and more. I typically do not go to a restaurant before looking up reviews on Yelp. That said, this app uses the iPhone’s GPS to show restaurants, bars, stores and more closest to you and will let you access reviews. You can also click through the address to bring it up in Maps or tap the number to give them a call. (Honorable mention goes to OpenTable where after looking up restaurants in Yelp, you can instantly book reservations) [iTunes Link: Yelp | OpenTable]

4. Instapaper - I wrote about Instapaper when it was first released back in January and have used it regularly every day since. On a normal day, I constantly find interesting headlines but don’t have time to read the articles when I’m at the computer. With Instapaper, I can click the bookmarklet in Firefox and it saves the article, allowing me to read it later on the train with my iPhone. Simple, and to the point. [iTunes Link]

3. Rolando - With Rolando, ngmoco has defined what an iPhone game should be. Use your finger and the accelerometers to help these cute little guys get through treacherous yet fun platform levels. If you are hesitant about paying the $9.99 to purchase the game, you might want to wait for a price drop but these videos might change your mind. [iTunes Link]

2. Pandora Radio - Internet radio at it’s finest. Start with an artist or song that you like and Pandora will play music catered to your tastes. Rate songs with a thumbs-up or thumbs-down to further define what you want to hear. If you’re bored of your personal music library like I am, this is the app for you. [iTunes Link]

1. TwitterFon - Some may say I tweet too much. You guys can blame it on TwitterFon. Despite it’s simple design (compared to Twitterrific or Twinkle), TwitterFon is the most efficient and packs the most features of any free Twitter application. Besides the built-in web browser, and automatic URL shortening with TinyURL, there are separate tabs to view your friends timeline, replies and direct messages. You also have the ability to view users’ profiles and follow them right within the application. [iTunes Link]

It’s been a great first year for the App Store and I hope the developers continue to release innovative products. The applications I am really looking forward to in 2009 are SlingPlayer and Qik, but it doesn’t look like Apple is too hot to release them just yet. We can only hope that application restrictions will continue to wither away by this time next year.

You’ll be reading a lot more of them soon. Maybe not so much here, on my personal blog but I’ve got two separate projects in the works with my friends Jeff and Jameson.

Will let you guys know as soon as possible! In the meantime, I update way too much on Twitter, just follow me: @kessler.

The 2002 film adaption of Philip K. Dick’s Minority Report presented a very impressive concept of gesture based computing. I remember seeing the film in the theater and being blown away by the system Tom Cruise uses to track down criminals. In 2006, Jeff Han’s Perceptive Pixel released an impressive multi-touch computing system controlled by a giant wall mounted display that seemed to be the first big step towards this type of futuristic computing. Han’s system made its primetime debut as CNN’s “Magic Wall” which was used all throughout Election 2008 overage by John King to display polling results.

The Perceptive Pixel device works much like an iPhone, utilizing a touchscreen that recognizes multi-touch gestures. Although this technology is fairly new and exciting, it doesn’t completely immerse the user in the computing experience. Enter Oblong Industries g-speak spatial operating system. From their site:

The SOE’s combination of gestural i/o, recombinant networking, and real-world pixels brings the first major step in computer interface since 1984; starting today, g-speak will fundamentally change the way people use machines at work, in the living room, in conference rooms, in vehicles.

To fully understand how incredible and immersive this system is, you NEED to watch the video:

It’s exciting to see the transition towards a more fluid and natural way of controlling computers and I think it’s a very safe bet to say that we will see the demise of the keyboard and mouse in our lifetime.

[Via Engadget]

Photo credit: Elizabeth Robertson / philly.com

By now, you must know that the Phillies beat the Rays 4-1 to win the 2008 World Series. Immediately after Lidge threw the game winning strikeout, fans poured out of their homes and bars onto the streets of the city. Everyone eventually convened on Broad Street from City Hall to well past South Street. It was an amazing spectacle, thousands of fans taking over the city to celebrate the win.

I was blown away by how peaceful things started off and for a few hours they stayed that way. As the night wore on, people got more drunk and mischief ensued. The aftermath report included flipped cars, broken windows, looted stores and more. This was all expected, especially in a city of crazy fans like Philly but the thing I was most enamored with was the Internet coverage. Thousands of photos and videos have poured into YouTube and Flickr of Wednesday night’s events. Jameson Detweiler has compiled a nice list of bookmarked pictures and video on Delicious. Alex Hillman also pointed out that three Phillies related terms were trending on Twitter at the time:

Here are some wild (and disturbing) videos of the madness:

With the election getting closer and closer my support for Obama is starting to rage. I found these amazing designs at Changethethought and thankfully they are free to use for non-commercial purposes.

I’ve sized them down to 480×320, perfect resolution for the iPhone. I’m sure they could be used on other phones too. You can save these to your hard drive and sync them to your iPhone in iTunes or an even easier way is to visit this site in mobile Safari and save them directly to the phone.

A few weeks ago I tweeted about throwing a Halloween party in Philly. I had an idea for a geeky costume and figured just walking around the streets of Philly, almost no one would get it.

Alex Hillman heard me loud and clear, and in his typical fashion, got to work immediately. With the help of Robert Perry, co-owner of Tattooed Mom, Alex was able to setup a date and time! The event will be held on Thursday, October 30th at 9pm. Make sure to wear your geekiest Halloween costumes, just try to pull them off a little better than those guys above!

Event Details:

What: IndyHall-oween ‘08
When: October 30, 2008
Where: Tattooed Mom 530 South Street, Philadelphia, PA 19147
RSVP: Facebook

Photo credit: epicnomz.com

I’m starving on the eve of Yom Kippur and what do I decide to write about? Perhaps one of the most unholy things to many Jews, and one of the most tantalizing treats ever for me… BACON. I stumbled across this article over at Chow entitled “10 Ways to Eat More Bacon” and man, most of them sound so sickeningly delicious. Don’t miss the recipe for Bacon Baklava in the comments.

Now all I want to do is cook up a Brooklynite. Oy, my heart.

Skeptics swooned when Snackbar’s Johnny Mac left to assume the head-chef position at Dan Clark’s recently opened UK inspired, Pub & Kitchen. I however, am a huge fan of the chef’s work and assumed that he could do no wrong, especially if he brought along the brussel sprouts.

There has been some scuttlebutt in the form of whispers and blog posts claiming that P&K is now offering the best burger in the city. Being a self-proclaimed authority on Philly burgers, I decided it was time to investigate these charges. The fabled ‘Windsor Burger’ is simply written on the menu with the sub-text ‘Pork belly and English cheddar’ and costs a somewhat average $12. I found the use of the term ‘pork belly’ to be strange, because typically in the UK, bacon is made from the side or back meat of the pig.

After settling in and choosing some local microbrews from the ten or so on draft, we ordered the burgers (one cooked to medium, the other medium-rare) and a side of onion rings. The food took about 15 minutes to arrive and the burger was presented in perfect open-faced fashion with bottom bun and patty covered with melted cheese and three strips of bacon, and the top bun with bibb lettuce, caramelized onions and tomato. The accompanying fries were fresh cut and seasoned, delicious but nothing to write home about.

Great presentation aside, the artistry of a perfect cheeseburger lies within the meat itself. The first bite reveals a flawlessly crafted patty, moist and fluffy and literally dripping with juices. We were slightly disappointed after realizing that both burgers were cooked a bit past the temperature we ordered (the medium-rare had only very little red) but the consistency and flavor of the natural, vegetarian fed cattle used just blew us away. Add the perfect crunch and saltiness of the pork belly, sweetness of the caramelized onions and soft, gooey cheddar and you will realize two bites in that this IS the best burger in Philly.

The onion rings were also some of the best I’ve ever tried, seemingly tempura battered, and knowing Johnny’s knack for a slightly eccentric spin, I wouldn’t be surprised if they were. I definitely recommend getting over to Pub & Kitchen to take the challenge, and let me know in the comments if you think it’s the best burger in the city. The rest of the menu reads like a gastro tour de force, including Fish & Chips, Lobster BLT and Fried Chicken with biscuits and gravy. I’m thinking a return trip will be happening real soon.

This week will be one of the most hectic in awhile, and after just moving back to Philly from living in San Francisco all summer, that’s saying a lot. I am starting my final year at Drexel and taking the maximum allowed credits this semester. On top of that I am working on a blog redesign, ideas for new topics to write about and a completely separate project that could end up being very big.

I hope to start blogging regularly again next week. Until then, you can follow me on Twitter.