A Look at Some Upcoming Sports Apps on the new Apple iPad…

On Saturday morning, geeks across the world will flock to their local Apple store for a chance to purchase the new Apple iPad tablet.  Count me as one of the nerds anticipating the release, for the sole reason that I believe it has the capacity to enhance the way we consume information as sports fans. It’s that simple.

The iPad presents an opportunity for the intersection of traditional written content, exclusive galleries of photos, and complementary audio/video…on a mobile device backed by an organization with the cultural and marketing insight to persuade media giants to devote time and resources on this platform.  Yeah, it’s an exciting time to be a sports information consumer.

While MLB demonstrated some of their forthcoming iPad-specific features at Apple’s keynote presentation back in January, a few sports-specific iPad applications were deployed to Apple’s App Store on Thursday afternoon.

Below is a sneak peak at four major iPad sports applications that will be available for download on Saturday.

MLB “At Bat” 2010 for iPad

Price: $14.99

Summary: This application contains all of the same functionality as the iPhone-version, which is an absolute dream for fantasy baseball owners (geek alert; but if you’ve made it this far, we’re probably right in your comfort zone).  Live stats, Gameday box scores, streamed audio, video highlights, etc.  The added bonus on the iPad-redesign is the ability to overlay data (i.e., open player profiles on top of box scores) – which is a lot more convenient for this platform (as opposed to switching between tabs on the iPhone).

The Skinny: I’m a little torn on this one.  As a pure iPad application, it’s just-below-tremendous.  The iPad-redesigned app from MLB costs $14.99, the same price of their iPhone-specific version.

Last year, the iPhone app cost $9.99 from August until the end of the season…so $14.99 for an entire season of rich baseball features is pretty worthwhile.

However, the real crux of this app – and the iPhone version, for that matter – is the available video.  To view live (non-blackout) game streams, you need an MLB.tv.  The lowest-price subscription is $99.95 for the year.  So, before thinking that this is the “ultimate iPad application” that mixes live ball games with a rich, dynamic user-experience….it’s going to cost you some decent quan (approximately $115.00).

NCAA Photos for iPad

Price: $1.99

Summary: NCAA Photos is an iPad-optimized application which offers a complementary experience for the 2010 Final Four.  Specially-configured backboard cameras have been positioned at Lucus Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, and will be pushed to this iPad application in near-realtime.

In the days leading up to the Final Four, enjoy over 80 historic photographs from the NCAA Tournament.  All photos can be saved to your Photos library in large resolution optimized for the iPad.

The Skinny:  What I’m hoping app developers/visionaries “get” is that the iPad is a platform to deliver enhanced content to my regular environments.  Locations such as the coffee house or the living room sofa come to mind.  Give me something that is easy to navigate and complements alternative methods of consumption (i.e., the television).

This app got it right; providing information/media that isn’t available anywhere else.  That’s incentive to indulge.  iPad innovation will be stifled when newspapers and other content outlets begin releasing iPad apps that offer no incentive (i.e., unique content that improves the viewing experience) to purchase their application (not to mention the iPad, itself).

Unfortunately, timing of the iPad release is going to kill this app.  iPads hit the Apple stores on Saturday.  The NCAA Championship is on Monday.  Is $1.99 worth it for one game?   Depends on who you ask.  For me, it’s worth it.

ESPN ScoreCenter XL

Price: $4.99

Summary: Just as the name describes, this special iPad version of ESPN’s ScoreCenter is a “bigger” experience than their insanely-popular version that runs on the iPhone.

All of the traditional elements are here; the ticker, news, events, game summaries, and customizable “My Teams”.

The biggest enhancement on this platform; you can see all of the aforementioned data at once…and video.  Video includes short game analysis and reporter snippets that customarily complement ESPN.com front page content.

The Skinny: I don’t see anything in this app that isn’t accessible from the Safari web-browser.  Now, video is the crux of the purchase because ESPN.com runs as Flash video, which renders it un-viewable from the iPad.  That said, it’s a sleek interface that allows for multi-view consumption.

Plus, ESPN has a tremendous track record in the mobile space.  Their ScoreCenter, FreezeFrame and ESPNRadio app on the iPhone platform are extremely well-designed and receive consistent updates and attention.  For five bucks, this seems like a worthwhile investment, especially if ESPN begins seamlessly adding more video (i.e., that you can’t get elsewhere) to the mix.

NBA Gametime Courtside

Price: Free

Summary: Courtside is a free application made by NBA Digital, that was build ground-up, specifically for the iPad.   The application doesn’t stream live video (yet) and is made to be an in-game companion that provides access to player information and game statistics.

When the game concludes, video highlights are available to view on the iPad.

The Skinny: for the price (um, free), this one is the real winner in the bucket of available iPad sports apps.  Sure, it has less functionality than the iPhone version, which offers audio game streams.  However, the iPhone version costs $5.99.  Besides, audio streaming is for the truly mobile-experience (as in, turn it on and put it in your pocket while on the road).

The game tracker is displayed in a sleek, landscape view and toggling between player info and alternative game statistics is really easy.

It’s free and something sports/iPad fans should eat it, especially with NBA playoffs right around the corner.

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