Star Walk for iPhone - app review [and giveaway]
Star Walk for iPhone is an amazing star gazing app that allows you to turn your iPhone into a digital planetarium. You can use the app as simply a reference app or as an interactive app as you're star gazing. For iPhone 4 and iPhone 3GS users you can use the built-in compass function to make the app even more interactive.
When you launch Star Walk you'll be asked if you'd like to allow the app to use your current location. Clicking yes will allow the live view feature to locate you and show you the part of the sky that is viewable to you.
iPhone 4 and iPhone 3GS users can take this a step further. Simply point your iPhone in the direction you'd like the app to tell you more about. The app will also track any movements you make and change live view to reflect the part of the sky you are navigating to. This app is perfect for amateurs as well as professionals. I would have loved this app when I took an astronomy course in college (I probably would have paid a lot more attention). I'd highly recommend this app to any college or high school student taking an astronomy class.
The app also has a nice daily info page that will show a ton of information pertaining to your individual location including sunrise, sunset, length of the day, and moon phases. The app also shows information pertaining to other planets including sunrise, sunset, and the angles at which you'll need to look from the horizon to see certain bodies (alt/az coordinates).
When it comes to the search feature, you've got tons of choices. Not only can you search constellations but you can search other bodies in the solar system, deep space objects, individual stars, and satellites. If an object is not visible from your location or at that particular time of day or year, it will be grayed out.
My absolute favorite feature of this app is the live view. It's simply gorgeous and extremely intuitive. You can view the simulation or choose an option that utilizes the camera to show your actual sky with star charts over it so you can interact with the real sky.
iPad and iPod touch users are not left out. Star Walk also offers a gorgeous iPad version as well. You can use location based features while you are in wifi. When you're not, you still have access to a beautifully put together reference app as well.
If you're in the market for an awesome astronomy reference app, this is hands down the one you want. These are just some of the features that make this app great. And it gets better! The makers of Star Walk were nice enough to give us some promo codes to celebrate the release of Star Walk 5.0! Four (4) lucky readers will be picked to receive codes for the iPhone version of Star Walk. Simply leave a comment letting us know what you'd use Star Walk for and we will pick 4 of you to receive a copy free, courtesy of TiPb and Star Walk! Make sure you leave your comment using a valid email address as that's how we will contact you to receive your code. (Promo codes only work in the US App Store, Apple's rule, not ours!)
Pros
- Beautiful interface
- Live mode is extremely smooth and accurate
- Daily info is extremely informative and well laid out
- Easy to use for even the most amateur star gazers
- Great resource for students
- Integrated night mode is a welcome feature
- Picture of the day feature is a nice way to learn about different bodies in our solar system and beyond
Cons
- A better UI for search would be nice. The rest of the app has a great UI
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How-to, jailbreak, and DIY Editor at iMore, owner at The Pod Drop & AnoStyle, Potter pundit, and the ninja in your iOS
There are 60 comments. Add yours.
This application is very interesting, and my study next semester is all about this stuff
I wish to have this
I hope I can fit the requirement to get this application :D
Ze app!!!....give me ze app!!!
Worse game ever!
I would love a promo code if still have some.
Love the site by the way.
thanks,
brad
Bought my 10year old daughter a telescope for her birthday, she loves the stars. Think this app is a great addition for her on the iPod touch
I LOVE my Star Walk app!
Looks like a great educational app. Would be great for my son.
Whats funny is my buddy with the HTC Evo, was bragging about his google star map and making fun of me because I didn't have one. Maybe now I have a shot!! :)
This would be awsome for me and my Daughter. We star gaze and this would be a great teaching tool
I have been thinking about getting this app.
Promo code sounds very nice!!
Give it to me! Give it to me! I love these apps!
This app would be great for my summer vacations in Canada in the 1000 Islands region of Ontario. Beautiful skies at night, and to be able to recognize constellations would be awesome.
Great looking app. This would be great to teach my two daughters more about the stars while we're camping while also showing them the benefits of technology.
I would love to use this app to teach my daughter more about the stars and hopefully learn a lot more myself!
I would love a copy to gaze at stars with my kids.
What better way for my 10 year old daughter to see Yosemite this year in all it's true glory on earth and above.
I bought this the first week I picked the iphone 4. It is a pretty cool time killer. It will eat your battery alive, so be warned.
iOs 4.2 is coming out today 10:00 AM PCT
http://www.apple.com/ios/
God, that font is horrible. Is that from the app or did you Jailbreak and add your own?
I would use it with the wife and kids.
My 5-year-old daughter has been asking about stars and constellations lately. If it's bright, I tell her it's a planet. If not, a star. And she knows Orion and that's about it. This would be a great help so I can stop lying to her.
This would be an amazing app for star gazing when we head up to Vermont
This application is very interesting and I like the live view mode. This app would come in handy because I do a lot camping.
Why not staring and not knowing. Visiting my country home where all the stars are visible first night always spent staring at the stars. After the work in town is the most relaxing thing to do.
I camp with Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts on a regular basis and having this tool available would help educate them on astronomy.
I would LOVe this app!!!
I would love to use this app, i have always loved looking at the stars and this app would just make the experience even greater.
I need this app so my Android friends can't brag about their app that I don't have...
I want this app to learn more about the skies above us... :)
This app is a chick magnet. I need a chick. Please give me the promo code. iOS 4.2 is finally here!
I'd use Starwalk as a great excuse to take a beautiful girl to a deserted beach for stargazing.
I'm a huge star gazer! Would love to win this app! It would be perfect for when the meteor showers come and for general night time view when the sky is extra sparkly :)
I think Star Walk would help get my kids more interested in astronomy.
I've been interested in this app for a while now. I would use it to point out stars and planets to my 5 year old daughter while we camp out. Trying to get her interested in the sciences and expand her mind a little bit.
@Paul, Planets don't twinkle. That's another crutch you can use.
Our five year-old son has recently become fascinated with the stars. I would love to win this app for my iPhone 4 and be able to learn more about what we are looking at with him. He would LOVE this! Please pick us. And thanks for the review and contest.
Well, clearly, I need to use it to measure how many parsecs it will take for me to make the Kessel Run.
I'd use StarWalk to help the family learn about astronomy; we face away from city lights, and get good star action, even more when camping. My kids are in middle school and astronomy is one of their areas of study; son just had to do a moon phases project and they were out stargazing for the meteor shower at 4AM the other night.
I've always wanted this app to show off to my dad. We used to stare at the stars for hours as a kid and he is always saying that the droid has this app and when I say iPhone does too he says "I doubt it's as good" now I wanna show him that iPhone really can do this, if not better!
I am on a lake in Eastern CT with very little light pollution. This app sounds great for sitting outside on a cold night and observing the sky.
I would like to try this app out, so include me in the giveaway.
Thanks
Oh, I want that app. Primarily so I can identify that one star I can see through all that dandy East Coast light pollution.
Show it off to my 2 nephews who are fascinated by stars / solar system currently.
I'll use this app to show off to my friends who loves watching stars
Hope I win this app.
I have a telescope that together with this app will make the whole experience much better, as you can see the available planets that you can visualize together with all the additional information, therefore I'll very much appreciate if you could give the promo code to get this app. Thanks
I'm going on a trip to Kakadu in the Northern Territory in Australia in January and this app would be AWESOME for learning about the southern hemisphere sky...
Great review!!!
My kids and I always look for the brightest star and thinking if that could be a planet.
Especially, the ones closer to the moon.
Always curious...
This app will surely help us.
Love to get a free promo code to use with them and learn as a family.
thanx and a have wonderful gobble gobble holiday.
I had Google Sky with my old android phone, and this looks even better. I'm getting this, promo or not. It's one of the best apps out there to pull out while talking to a girl outside, excellent icebreaker :)
I'd use it to woo my wife all over again. I'd impress her by showing her the constealltions on a starry evening while we cuddle up together.
Looks like a great app! I can't wait to try it out for my backyard stargazing...
My son is is absolutely fascinated with what he sees in the sky. What a great app this could be to help us learn together and have fun doing it!
With this app I can show my three year old son without the clouds what he sees in the sky. Every day he looks for the moon and the stars and wants to know something about them.
I'd like that to impress my girlfriend!
Have you guys tried the PathFinder app? Looks good, enables you to share your locations with friends and stuff... More at www.pathfinder.buapps.com
There exists apparently a bunch to be able to realize with this. I feel you made certain nice tips with capabilities furthermore.
I have 3 teenagers. 2 in highschool and 1 in jr high. I would use this app all the time for projects and essays. Not to menchin, it's totally cool.
Thought I'd update that its .99 cents right now in App Store. Worth it I think
I have three young children and this app looks like an amazing tool to help them learn about astronomy.
I'd use it to show off the iphone 4 to friends so that they can know what this phone can do. Can this app show the sky at different points in time?
I would use this to teach the kids I work with all about the stars, planets, constellations and what's what in the sky.
This will be very handy when I get my own starship.
Great review! As an amateur astronomer I would really make use of such a fine application! And I can definately use the live feature to teach my girlfriend more about the sky.