FactBook

Platform: Android

RATING:
3 out of 5

PRICE:
FREE

TASTY:
Tap into reference facts about dozens of countries, powered by two of the most popular (free) sources of global data available online.

BUMMER:
An excellent starting point for country research, but lacking updated, in-depth information provided by for-pay services (such as CultureGrams.) Forces a large data download that (currently) cannot be moved to your SD card.

COOL:
A clean, slick overlay that lets you tap into basic country data and reference facts from your mobile phone.

Read all of my past Android app reviews at Appolicious and Yahoo! Tech -- click here.

REVIEW:
For many years, novice online researchers have relied on two free online sources of country data and reference facts: CIA World Fact Book and the United Nations.

Taken together, this pair of sources provide sometimes dated but always spot-on data to kick-start basic research needs for dozens of countries around the globe. Now FactBook ties this pair together via a clean, user-friendly interface right on your DROID.

For many users, the app will prove useful as a time killer or to simply learn something new about a country of interest. Tapping into basic information about a region or individual country’s economy, population, government, or geography is a breeze.

That said, if you’re looking for research-quality data that’s up to date and editor reviewed, FactBook is a poor choice. For-pay resources like CultureGrams have editors who update country reports and their supporting data sets every few months, while gathering intelligence from locals on the ground in more than 200 countries.

Still, once the developers enable “move to SD card” the resource-hogging FactBook app will again be loaded onto my DROID for casual use whenever the mood strikes.