Pudding Monsters is a new game from the creators of Cut The Rope. It’s available on the iPad and iPhone. There is also a lite version to try first if you want. It’s a cute puzzle adventure, whereby your aim is to save their friends from the cold hearted fridge owner. It’s a crazy game. And good fun.

Hot of the press of my last post, Electronic Arts has started it’s war on blitzing the AppStore with its reductions. The most expensive items are now $0.99 while several are now free. Be careful, since free might really be freemium.

As examples the following are on sale, Dead Space, Battlefield 2, Sim City Deluxe, and many more.

It’s at that time of year where Google, Apple and developers are getting ready to offer free and reduced media, from apps, films, music and more.

Firstly, make sure you have the 12 Days of Xmas app from Apple installed. Every day from the 26th December something free is given away. Last year was a mix of songs, music videos, films, apps and TV shows. If you install the app now as I did, I have already have received a free music video.

Second. The Apple AppStore closes shortly, and it is then that a number of developers reduce their apps. Why. Well just think of all those people opening Apple gear over Xmas. Reducing and promoting the reduction, in turn pushes your apps higher up the table, and in turn creates more sales. In fact, getting it right over Xmas means a massive spike in sales for developers. For us consumers, we get a ton of apps for a small amount of money.

So if you have android watch out as Google is offering something similar to Apple’s 12 days of Xmas. In fact it has also given away a free music video, ironically of the same artist Rod Stewart. If Google do anything like they did last year, they offered a sale on apps at crazy low prices. In fact, when I got my new Samsung Note last year, I was able to purchase all the apps I wanted for under £5. I bought over 15. Link to Google promotion Xmas Google Offer

In addition, the developers on the android platform offer similar reductions. The difference here is making sure you check out the variety of difference sources the apps are available from as android apps can be bought from many difference places. Make sure you have the Amazon AppStore app installed. Between Google, Amazon and the developers own websites they is sure to be huge discounts on offer.

So whatever you do, do sneak a peek at the deals whilst eating your Xmas pudding.

So another day and another session in court for Apple and Samsung. What was interesting this time was the fact that the judge denied Samsung a mistrial and Apple a ban on Samsung products.

This seems like the Judge having had enough of the constant legal wrangling between these two companies. But the piece I find interesting is the judge denied a sales ban on Samsung phones due to the fact Apple hadn’t and won’t get impacted by Samsung phones. If that is the case what merit does the billion dollar settlement figure against Samsung hold true? In the UK, the courts threw out most of Apple’s claims. They weren’t interested. HTC settled with Apple. It would be interesting to understand the monetary values apportioned to that agreement and then compare it to the billion dollars Samsung is meant to pay to Apple. I doubt for one minute there is any similarities.

There is no question Samsung copied Apple to try and compete, but they had no choice. That is what consumers wanted. But their copying didn’t impact Apple sales. The US patent system sure doesn’t make sense. A smaller settlement should be paid but not a billion dollars. But then are the features found on iPhones unique and patentable? The same question could be asked for Samsung. And should essential mobile technologies that we as consumers need, be allowed to be patented. And if they are, a separate ruling body should set out the agreed amount other companies that use this technology should pay. Simple solution.

What both these companies now need to do is innovate and not litigate.