Widely used and lauded by members of USA Swimming, Deck Pass Plus for iPhone delivers some essential tools to the hands of top-level swimmers and their families. With the main downside being an archaic interface, the app succeeds in bringing live swim competition data and individual achievements to mobile. Deck Pass Plus for iPhone was developed jointly by Statera and USA Swimming. It is a sponsor-supported $1.99 download. A free version of the app that excludes live event data is also available. This week's review was conducted on an iPhone 5 version 8.1.2, with AT&T LTE service.
RECORD TIMES: For swimmers, Deck Pass Plus makes it easy to keep track of personal achievements -- in this case, best times, goals and meet results. Goals can be set, and the app makes note of goals that are met. An in-app rewards engine gives swimmers virtual patches to commemorate their achievements. Patches are stored within the app, and can be added by scanning a QR code at a swim meet or by viewing short educational videos within the app. Deck Pass Perks provides users with discounts at various swimming retailers. As for live features, paid subscribers get live meet results powered by active.com. This makes tracking a child or friend’s performance very convenient for those who cannot attend a meet. Swimmer times are registered for each race in order of place with splits for each lap. Users can search results by event or team to find their swimmer. They can also search for an individual by name or event within the separate Times Search feature. For select events, like last week's Winter Junior National Championships, the app provides a live webcast of the pool, results, event-specific news and swimmer bios.
FALSE STARTS: The biggest downside of the app is its look. For tech savvy users, it feels like a 100-year-old product. That said, digging deeper into the feature-set uncovers some great assets. Re-skinning the experience would provide a nice refresh, but an interface overhaul is probably necessary to bring the app into the now. While live results and individual performance data is plentiful, the app would benefit from added news coverage -- primarily in video form. The live streaming feature is great, but where is the library of clips showing key races and photo finishes? A Facebook integration is present, but its use is nowhere to be found. Furthermore, friends cannot be located via social networks or even the iPhone contacts list. For the age group that this app serves, this is a must-add in future releases.
BOTTOM LINE: Deck Pass Plus for iPhone is a very useful product for USA Swimming members and those wishing to track swimmer performance from afar. It meets many needs like delivering live event data, tracking personal goals and chronicling achievements. Amazingly, it does all this with an out-of-date interface. The app deserves two stars for now, with an aesthetic refresh, video clips and more social features on the wish list. iTunes users give it 4.5 stars.
Amie Sheridan (amie.sheridan31@gmail.com) is a freelance writer in Philadelphia.
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