Top 5 iOS and Android Apps of the Week: Chainsaw Juice King, Flappy Bird, and More!

Chainsaw Juice King (Android and iOS)

Chainsaw Juice King: Idle Shop is one interesting title that merges elements of idle simulation with quirky humor, and I was immediately drawn into the idea of managing a juice empire. How do I spend my day? The answer is simple: by harvesting animated fruits using a chainsaw. I begin by slicing live fruits with a chainsaw. Collecting them helps me produce juices, and selling them as products to customers is the end goal.

Of course, as the game progresses, more fruit types and processing steps are introduced to add more layers of complexity to the juice production line. There are in-game upgrades to enhance stats like speed and productivity, in addition to storage upgrades to facilitate longer runs. The presence of ads is a necessary evil, letting me gain temporary boosts including increased production or additional harvesters.

I love the charming and humorous art styles that make the game a quirky one, boasting colorful, vibrant graphics that enhance the playful atmosphere. My ears were also well-served by sound effects that complement the visuals, contributing to an engaging and entertaining experience overall. I do not really agree with the monetization features that adds a damper to the game, ultimately making it a pay-to-win game.

• Price: Free / Advertising: Yes / In-app purchases: Yes ($1.99-$11.99) / Account required: Yes

There is enough progression variety to keep the casual gamer hooked, although searching around forums for tips and tricks of the game led to me discovering some users complaining about performance issues, including battery drain and crashes. The way ads were implemented was also too aggressive for my taste, so try this if you want something new and refreshing, with a risk of being turned off by the pay-to-win model.

• Download Chainsaw Juice King from the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store.

Flappy Bird (Android only)

Have you given Flappy Bird a go before? I remember the craze when it was first released, where such a pointless game garnered millions upon millions of downloads. More than a decade has passed since its release and subsequent removal, but a comeback is on the cards courtesy of the Epic Game Store. This is an Android-only release, reintroducing the game's signature tap-to-flap mechanics to a whole new generation of gamers in the form of classic gameplay and new features.

First of all, does it play as well as the original? There is just something I felt was “off” about this game, but until now, I cannot quite place my finger on it. On paper, the core gameplay remained faithful to the original. All I needed to do was tap the screen to navigate the bird through a series of pipes without crashing into obstacles. I still liked the simplicity, but perhaps that is nostalgia talking. The newer generation of gamers might think this to be an archaic model and quickly feel bored.

What’s new is the "Quest Mode," which offers additional challenges and variety beyond the endless flapping of the classic mode. I can also expect to see new characters, themes, and global challenges, since there are more updates planned for the rest of the year. Unfortunately, monetization is part of this game, featuring in-game advertisements and optional in-app purchases that include cosmetic upgrades.

• Price: Free / Advertising: None / In-app purchases: Yes / Account required: Yes

If you want to take a ride down memory lane, then this edition of Flappy Bird is worth checking out for Android users. However, I doubt it will be able to be as popular as before, seeing how much more intricate and sophisticated mobile gamers have become over the years.

• Download Flappy Bird from the Epic Game Store.

Smart Noter - AI Note Taker (Android & iOS)

Harnessing the power of AI is nothing new, and this week, I have stumbled upon Smart Noter. Touted to be an AI note taker, I found this to be a rather versatile productivity app for everyday use that would come in particularly handy for the likes of students, professionals, and virtually anyone seeking for an efficient note-taking solution. In other words, AI is leveraged to transcribe, summarize, and organize information.

What are some of the key features I discovered about it? For starters, I liked how Smart Noter was able to transcribe voice recordings and generate concise summaries. However, since I am not a native English speaker, there were instances when some of my words were not properly captured, so it is always a good idea to read whatever has been transcribed to ensure it makes sense. Otherwise, it should be great to capture various situations like lectures, meetings, or interviews. 

I also love how I was able to engage with my notes via the AI chat interface, allowing for quick queries and information retrieval. It offers an easy way to dive right into what has been captured for easy and quick reference. I love lists as they help keep me on the straight and narrow. The app generates to-do lists automatically, highlighting key points from transcribed content to further enhance productivity. Since I am also a Notion user, I like how it can export my notes to other platforms like Slack, Notion, and Google Docs.

Price: Free / Advertising: None / In-app purchases: Yes ($6.99-$49.99) / Account required: No

Overall, I would rate Smart Noter as a robust AI-powered note-taking solution, where it blends transcription, summarization, and interactive features into a cohesive platform that is easy to use and hard to get rid of. Uninstalling it after spending some time with Smart Noter made me feel as though I had lost a digital assistant.

• Download Smart Noter - AI Note Taker from the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store.

Pico AI (Android & iOS)

Time is always of the essence, isn’t it? In this fast-paced world, every single second is precious. What if you always wanted to learn something new, but never really had the time to do so? Enter the likes of Pico AI, a micro learning app that was designed to deliver concise, expert-crafted lessons across various subjects. Booting up the app for the first time required me to key in information on over 20 questions for the app to figure out my propensities and interests. Once I got past those probing questions, it quickly grew on me.

There is a vast repository of knowledge to pick up from Pico AI, including math, literature, history, logic, art, finance, philosophy, and biology. I liked how lessons can be broken down into bite-sized chunks, making it useful for those who commute daily to work on public transport. Lessons can be broken down into 15-minute segments, allowing folks like me to incorporate learning into my daily routines without significant time commitments.

I was also fond of the diverse subject matter since the app covers a broad range of topics, allowing me to explore various fields of knowledge. I am also not constrained by my schedule, since I can learn at my own pace in comfort. It is nice to see built-in features that monitor my learning progress to help me remain motivated and consistent in my educational journey. I would benefit most from a subscription, with options for a monthly subscription at $9.99 and an annual subscription at $59.99. 

• Price: Free / Advertising: None / In-app purchases: Yes ($4.99-$59.99) / Account required: No

It is rather expensive for anyone living in developing countries, but if I were to take a more holistic view of the matter, it is still cheaper than buying specialized textbooks on various subject matters in the long run. There is also rather limited information on interactive features or community engagement, but it works great for introverts like me.

• Download Pico AI from the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store.

Google NotebookLM (Android and iOS)

Google enters the AI fray with yet another app called NotebookLM. Available on both Android and iOS platforms, this AI-powered note-taking app might come in handy to a select number of folks, although I believe it is not everyone’s cup of tea. What can it do? Read on to find out more. 

For starters, I was able to upload various content types, ranging from PDFs to websites, YouTube videos, and text, turning them into notebooks for easy reference later. The AI can also summarize the uploaded content as it figures out connections between sources. This does make research work a wee bit easier since in-line citations are provided for added trustworthiness. There are also audio overviews that transform uploaded content into podcast-style audio discussions with AI hosts, where I can listen to them in the background or offline.

Interestingly, I can also join such AI-hosted discussions to ask questions or steer the conversation in different directions, which does come in handy as a sounding board in case no other humans are around to tackle the issue intellectually. I believe NotebookLM is particularly beneficial for students, educators, researchers, and content creators. While it is user-friendly and offers offline support for audio content, it does feel a little rough around the edges, lacking some advanced features found in other note-taking apps.

• Price: Free / Advertising: None / In-app purchases: Yes ($1.99-$249.99) / Account required: Yes

Ah, well, I should not complain too much, considering how this is a free app. Basically, it is worth trying out if you are looking for something that is AI-driven with note-taking and summarization capabilities while you are on the move.

• Download Google NotebookLM from the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store.

We have arrived at the end of this week's list in the blink of an eye. We hope you've enjoyed our carefully curated list of mobile apps and games for now. If there are any apps or games you would like others to know of, why not share them in the comments?