Grammar Up

30.06.2009

Once a test is complete, you're taken to a screen which lists out all the questions and their correct answers and shows you how well (or poorly, as the case may be) you did. For the answers you got wrong, it points out both the answer you chose and the one you should've chosen. An e-mail button on the top-right corner also allows you to send those results to others -- or to yourself for archival purposes.

The app's progress meter keeps track of all the questions you've answered correctly across all sections of the application and displays your scores accordingly. It also allows you to click on any of the progress bars and answer all the questions from that section that you'd previously gotten wrong.

I wasn't thrilled with the design of the app, which seems to use a lot of custom buttons and graphics rather than the standard table cells and selection mechanisms we've come to expect from most iPhone apps. For instance, when you answer a question, it momentarily appears as though the button on the following screen is selected. And when you tap the gear icon, there's an awkward and slow animated transition standing between you and the settings screen. Using the standard interface might sacrifice some personality, but it would have made the app faster, more attractive, and less awkward to use.

Grammar Up does what it sets out to do rather well. The questions the application displays are well-rounded and intelligent, the answers are all correct, and the sheer size and variety of the collection is amazing. Despite the app's design weaknesses, you'd be hard pressed to find another quiz application on the App Store that matches up to Grammar Up.