Description
SkyORB the famous 3D planetarium on PC and Mac is finally arrived, entirely redesigned for the iPhone !
SkyORB is more than a simple star map, it's a collection of 6 tools including a 3D star map, 3D planetarium, ephemeris, search engine, sun clock and more.
SkyORB is based from V3X.net engine. It features a 3D interface, with OpenGL ES 1.1 and OpenGL 2.0 support, a search engine, a large catalog of stars, planets, current satellite (including current space shuttle missions) and let you choose see the actual sky from any point on Earth.
SkyORB allows you to fine tune your observation location (and orientation with digital compass if available) with automatic detection from GPS (or entering the longitude, latitude and altitude). Information like sunset and sunrise are computed as well as moonrise and moonset and full / new moon dates.
The sky map is drawn with realtime precession. You can rotate freely and in realtime in 360 degrees at 60 frames per second. Moon and other planets are rendered in real 3D objects with different level of details using state of the art 3D effects for the iPhone.
SkyORB is *free* of charge and you can upgrade to the premium version directly from the application.
What's New in Version 1.1
- Improved search user interface, using Spotlight like interface.
- Fixed gimbal lock issues with digital compass.
- Fixed moon phase name, added lunar and solar eclipse.
- Improved orbit view, with planets names correctly displayed.
- Added MPC view in local view.
- Added user location button. A database of main location is available. Handy to see the sky visible in other towns.
- Fixed moon set/rise time (especially day without rise/set).
- New gallery mode in space view, ability to quickly move from a planet to an other, ability to align to the sun.
Customer Reviews
Extremely Inaccurate
Items such as time of sunset are way off, while other features seem to do okay. App needs quite a bit more work, but shows promise.
Could be good!
I LOVE planetarium apps but this one is useless unless you buy the "Premium Version" for $3 like I did which means I actually have some functionality now! Some things are super cool such as the Sun and most of the planets and moons look as good or better than in other comparable apps. There are a few bugs still so I can't wait for the first update!
Useless Free; Beta Paid
The paid version of this app has virtues hiding among the ill-conceived confusion. It's not "free" and "premium" versions, but "broken" and "full/beta." Warrants a second star because it's not total junk, just a royal mess of design and execution.
There is no descriptive content, only charts labeling objects. Pinch to zoom way close (a difficult task to keep the object centered), and Messier symbols turn into badly cropped photographic objects, a potentially nice touch.
Upon first opening the free version, errors in design lead to a bad first impression of arbitrary motion. Dragging along the display moves objects in seemingly random directions, usually at first opposite the drag, followed by a slow swoop back in something close to the intended direction. Beyond that, the app appears to do nothing -- just displays a planetarium you can't use, while offering an in-app paid upgrade.
Here's what's really happening: The "free" version is essentially non-functional. You can look at it, but not use it beyond spinning the orrery. Problem is, it opens on first use to a close up view of the Sun. If you don't zoom far enough out to see the planets, it seems senseless.
Worse, the dragging rotates the sun, but in the wrong manner. Rather than spin it in place, dragging the foreground first pushes the Sun and background in the opposite direction; the Sun then floats back to the center of the screen. This gives the wrong impression and is imprecise to control.
Switch to the star chart for the first time during the day to see the worst feature of this app: a blank screen and a message telling you stars are not visible during the day, a Black Screen of Death instead of a star chart. If you like to study astronomy from your armchair whenever you please, or if you hope to plan the evening's viewings before nightfall, get a different app.
To reach its potential, fix the rotation, open to intelligable screens, and add some actual content to the free version. When hiding the interface, kill the lingering dialog, "interface is now hidden," and allow the compass to remain visible.
On my laptop, I installed the free version of SkyORB for Windows Vista. It won't load.
- Category: Education
- Updated Jan 12, 2010
- Current Version: 1.1
- 9.9 MB
- Languages: English, French
- Seller: Stephane Denis
- © (C) realtech VR 2009
Requirements: Compatible with iPhone and iPod touch. Requires iPhone OS 3.0 or later.
Top In App Purchases
- 1 Premium Version $2.99
