The Best iPad Apps Of The Week, September 25-October 1, 2011

The AppAdvice iPad App Of The Week: Cars 2 AppMATes, Free, Released September 29 Lightning McQueen, Tow Mater, And Others Racing Now ON The iPad (Get Your Toys Now) Disney’s new line of AppMATes Mobile Application Toys is now available at retail stores nationwide. The toys and Cars 2 AppMATes app turn the iPad into your very own virtual play mat. We're so impressed with this toy+app combination, we think it could be the 2011 toy of the year. Developed by Disney Consumer Products (DCP) and Disney Mobile, the AppMATes toy line features miniature Disney Pixar Cars 2 vehicles that interact with the iPad through the use of sensors. Each car, which cost $20 for a two-pack or $13 separately, work exclusively through the free app, which was released this week in the App Store. New Releases The Bippolo Seed and Other Lost Stories - Dr. Seuss, $6.99 & Universal, Released September 27 Dr. Seuss's Long-Forgotten Stories Come To iDevices Oceanhouse Media, Inc. announced today its Dr. Seuss’s The Bippolo Seed and Other Lost Stories app is now available for the iPhone/iPod touch and iPad. The $6.99 universal app features a collection of seven short stories written and illustrated by Dr. Seuss for Redbook magazine back in the 1950s, and is being launched on the same day as the Random House release of the hardcover book. According to Oceanhouse, aside from scholars and collectors, few eyes have seen these rare tales for more than half a century. News of their release has been highly anticipated by Dr. Seuss fans, generating much excitement for readers young and old. Freefall Spelling, $.99 & Universal, Released September 28 Your Kids Will Love Latest Title From ClickySticky Creator The creators of the award-winning ClickySticky app titles, Merge Mobile, have released a new app for the iPhone/iPod touch and iPad. Freefall Spelling offers a unique and fun way for children to practice spelling. The $.99 interactive game includes a fantastic soundtrack along with hand drawn original artwork and illustrations. The end result is a fast-paced interactive learning experience. Plus, as your child spells several words in a row, they are rewarded with fun activities such as balloon and bubble popping, along with other rewards. ExtraDash, $4.99, Released September 29 ExtraDash, Though Not Yet Perfect, Looks Awesome On The iPad Combination apps are nothing new on the iPad. And yet, perhaps there is none better than ExtraDash, which just arrived in the App Store. Created by Amotech Ltd., the $4.99 app is like a high-tech, Swiss Army Knife for your tablet. Called “Your Luxury Application,” ExtraDash offers worldwide Internet radio, GPS, news, music, and indeed, a lot more. Designed using an impressive white-on-black interface, the app includes tools for both Wi-Fi and 3G users. March Of The Dinosaurs, $7.99, Released September 29 March Of The Dinosaurs Arrives For the iPad TouchPress, in association with National Geographic Channel, have released March Of The Dinosaurs, the must-have app of the week for iPad. Available for $7.99, the interactive storybook takes you to the Arctic 70 million years ago. Here, you explore the fascinating world of dinosaurs over the course of 12 exhaustive chapters. Along the way, you’ll get in interact with 11 different creators – large and small. For example, you’ll meet Albertosaurus, considered the Jaws of Death because of its large head and powerful jaw and sharp teeth. On the small side is Opossum, a little beast that still roams the Earth today. Magical Weather, $.99, Released September 29 Magical Weather App Arrives On iPad The hundreds of weather apps for the iPad welcomes another this week. Magical Weather offers forecasts using an animated weather station. Created by Sophiestication Software, the $.99 app includes hourly and daily weather forecasts for up to nine places in the world. By default, these include your current location, San Francisco, New York City, Heidelberg, Bergen, and Tokyo. To add new locations (or delete the ones already there), simply click on the Edit icon. In total, the app provides forecasts for up to 2 million locations worldwide. KATAMARI Amore, Free & Universal, Released September 30 KATAMARI Amore Rolls Into The App Store The second iOS installment of Namco's popular Katamari Damacy series, Katamari Amore, is now available in the App Store. Katamari Amore once again allows you to play as the Prince as he rolls his sticky Katamari all around new environments trying to collect as many objects as possible in order to increase its size. When you first start out your Katamari is only able to pick up smaller items like pins and marshmallows, but as you gather items you'll be able to pick up monstrous ones like planes, ships, and even entire buildings which will also allow you to discover new areas. Updated Sports Illustrated Football Rivals HD, Free, Updated September 28 Sports Illustrated Football Rivals - Learn All There Is To Know About Football's Greatest Rivalries Sports Illustrated has just released a couple of new applications. The apps, "Sports Illustrated Football Rivals" for iPhone and iPod touch, and for iPad, offer users a unique inside into some of American football's greatest, most notorious rivalries. Both applications are available to download in the App Store for free. Stocktouch, $4.99 & Universal, Updated September 28 StockTouch App Gets A Terrific Update One of the more attractive and useful apps for the iPad has received its first significant update. Stocktouch has gone universal and now includes a lot more tools for the active investor. First released in July, StockTouch makes watching stocks enjoyable, even when it’s a bad day on Wall Street. Created by Visible Market, Inc. the app contains an innovative interface to help you watch the market as it unfolds each day. The Best iPad Apps Of The Week is published each weekend; a companion piece, The Best iPhone Apps Of The Week, is published separately. Attention developers: If you would like your app to be considered for one of our “Best Of” lists, please me know by sending me a tweet @bryanmwolfe. Note: Your app must have been new or updated in the last week to make the current list.