"Almost" perfect
Ive been using this app for long enough to see the brilliant potential, but also the limitations.
The best feature by far isnt even a drawing feature - its the gallery. Not only can you see (and rate) other artists work, you can actually run a playback and watch it being created stroke by stroke. This is pure genius!! It should be a standard feature of every art app out there! A true masterstroke! Its like having a hundred art lessons in your pocket! However, its also available on the website (through Java) and in the lite version for free, so its not really a selling feature for the full version. Still, Id gladly pay double for the full version just to show my appreciation for the sheer brilliance of this one feature alone.
The next best thing is that its so simple and fun to use! Its got a lovingly shallow learning curve, yet its versatile enough to be taken seriously (youll be up to speed faster than it took you to read this sentence). Dont be fooled by the simplicity though, you really can create some beautiful art with this thing!
The main limitation of the app is the infuriating inaccuracy, and lack of sensitivity of the thing. While thats true of all drawing apps on these devices, other apps seem to do a better job of "faking it" with liberal zoom etc. Colors! was initially designed for the Nintendo DS with its pressure sensitive screen and stylus input, and after seeing whats been created by others on the DS, I am completely convinced that its the perfect way to make art on the go. Unfortunately, this review is for the iPhone/iPod version, and its not nearly as brilliant on these units. To make up for the lack of a pressure sensitive screen, the designers have come up with a novel "tilt" feature: You mimic pressure sensitivity by tilting your device as you draw. Its really cool, fun to use, and its better than not addressing the issue at all, but its also quite difficult to get predictable results. Theyve tried to address the inherent inaccuracy of drawing with a finger, but the adjustable offset cursor and meager 3 levels of zoom do little to make up for it. If youre serious about using this thing to create art, you owe it to yourself to get a iPod stylus to go with it - its not perfect, but it will save you a lot of agravation! Having said that, if you dont do detailed drawings, this wont even be an issue for you.
Another possible pitfall (depending how you like to work) is the lack of layers. You only get one layer per drawing (just like a real canvas/paper). If youre into pixel-perfect perfection, youll be doing a LOT of touch-ups that you wouldnt have to with multiple layers. On the other hand, if you happily leave your work "in the raw", you probably wont even notice.
The only REAL blunder made by this app is the woefuly inadequate 19 save slot limit. Those 19 slots fill up REALLY quickly! If you like to do sketches to finish on a rainy day, or like to work on multiple drawings at once, youll really feel the pain here. You cant even export to the Camera Roll and import later, because there is no import! To put it bluntly, there is no work-around. When it comes time to save your 20th drawing, youll have to over-write one of your older ones. Given the amount of memory that even the cheapest of these devices has, this is an inexcusable limitation. The fact that the ONLY difference between the full and lite version is the ability to save/export just rubs salt into the wound. Sorry Colors! you just earned a lost star for that one.
Overall, I really like this app. Its a simple, fun, and quite capable little drawing app. Try the lite version first, and if you like it (or to show your appreciation for the gallery/playback feature), buy the full version. Better yet, get a Nintendo DS and see what its really capable of!
Letter 19 about
Colors!, v1.2