Price Disparities Favor iPhone Users

Software exclusivity is quickly becoming a thing of the past.  What once was a killer app for one system or another has now turned into the consumer connundrum of which software to buy for which device and why.  Determining a winner based on techincal differences and personal preferences takes time and research, yet one thing has become readily apparent: the iPhone is home to some tremendous bargains on some amazing software.  What you may spend $20 on elsewhere could only cost you $2 in the App Store, and it’s entirely possible you’ll end up with a better experience too!  Don’t believe us?  Take a look at these 5 examples of spectacular AppStore savings;

Burgertime Deluxe – Mac $19.95, PC $6.99, iPhone $1.99

What is it? It may not get mentioned as much as Pac-Man or Donkey Kong, but Burgertime is an old school classic that every gamer from the arcade generation holds near and dear to their hearts.  Peter Pepper needs to navigate a series of platforms to drop all the parts of a burger down to the plate, and he has to do it while battling evil foodstuffs come to life.  Namco recently resurrected this much beloved franchise with Burgertime Deluxe for the PC and Mac, with an iPhone port following shortly afterwords.  $6.99 for the PC version is an excellent price, but they have the outrageous audacity to ask nearly $20 for the Mac version!  Apple fans, don’t spill the big bills on this fast food classic.  Grab it on the value menu instead — the iPhone version is only $1.99!

Is there a difference? Technically no.  Visually the game is dead on.   So are the levels.  The controls though?  That’s a different story.  While no means a deal breaker, it’s not always as easy as it should be to get young Mr. Pepper off a ladder.  This problem only pops up from time to time, but it was definitely aggravating enough to mention.  Still — for $18 in savings it’s a small price to pay.

Star Wars Legacy: Broken – Trade Paperback $17.95, Original Issues $17.94, iPhone $1.98

What is it? Star Wars Legacy is an ongoing comics series published by Dark Horse Comics.  Set more than 100 years after the events of Return of the Jedi, it tells the story of Cade Skywalker, padawan-turned bounty hunter in a dark and sithly future.  Broken collects the first six issues of the series.  With the trade paperback you’ll need to spend $17.95 to get started on the adventure — but on the iPhone?  Broken Vol. 1 and Broken Vol. 2 are 99 cents each on the App Store, and collect all six issues when combined.

Is there a difference? You’re going to lose the tactile feel and smell of a real comic, but if you can live with that you’ll find reading comics on the iPhone is even better than the real thing.  The panels are bigger and easier to read, the backlit screen makes the colors pop, and the panel-by-panel navigation feels more comfortable than we’d like to admit.

Toki Tori – WiiWare 1000 points (roughly $10), iPhone $4.99

What is it? One of the best puzzle platformers ever created, Toki Tori tells the tale of a chicken trying to save his friends.  Rather than controlling our hero first hand, you’ll simply point him to where you want to go.  When it debuted on WiiWare last year it seemed like a good use of the system’s much touted motion controls.  But let’s be frank — this thing was made for touching.  Thankfully you can pick up our recently hatched hero on the iPhone for half the price of it’s WiiWare predecessor.

Is there a difference? Yep — it’s better on the iPhone.  Drastically in fact.  We had two major complaints with the Wii version — the default view was zoomed out much too far, and the motion controls required far too steady of a hand to be effective.  On the iPhone, both of these concerns have been addressed.  Of all the versions of Toki Tori we’ve seen over the years, the iPhone version is easily the best.

Droplitz – PC $9.99, PS3 $9.99, iPhone $1.99

What is it? Sometimes it’s the simple things in life that we become the most passionate about.  Tetris.  Bejeweled.  And now, Droplitz.  The goal in Droplitz is to rotate pipes in an attempt to guide their contents down to the drains below.  On the PC and PS3 they expect you to droplitz $10 of your hard earned cash, but on the iPhone?  You’ll only have to droplitz $1.99.

Is there a difference? The PS3 and PC versions are definitely prettier, and the larger screen allows for a bigger playfield too.  Despite this, the iPhone version is crazy addictive and captures the spirit and intent of the game perfectly.  You’ll technically be settling for less, but it’s really 10% less the experience at 80% less the price.  You do the math.

Awaken – Mac: $15, iPhone $1.99

What is it? Awaken is the Mac’s leading iTunes-friendly alarm clock.  Want to wake up to your complete collection of Anne Murray classics?  It’s all yours, Snowbird.  With everything it has to offer, $15 has always been a pretty good price for Awaken.  But if you can live with the delicate sounds of morning coming from your iPhone?  You can do that for $1.99.

Is there a difference? This is the only app on our list that has some pretty drastic differences, but that has less to do with handicapping the mobile version and more to do with the needs of each device.  While both devices serve as an alarm clock built entirely around you music library, the Mac version offers a few neat twists like the ability to set alarms to launch programs or the ability to control the alarm from across the room with your Mac remote.  If you tend to wake up, shower, watch a video podcast, and then check your email over breakfast, you can program the Mac version to do all of these things for you.  Well, almost.  You’ll need to eat that grapefruit yourself.  Awaken for the iPhone is a great choice for an iPhone alarm clock, especially if you tend to travel.  But if you want a fully-featured alarm clock that will cater to you daily desktop needs, you may actually want to spend the extra.

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