Wolfram Alpha, the online computational knowledge engine that launched in May, now has an app available in the App Store. According to its App Store description, the app "plugs directly into Wolfram|Alpha's supercomputing cloud to deliver the unrivaled power of the Wolfram|Alpha knowledge engine to the mobile environment."
While the app still requires an internet connection to work, it includes a special keyboard to make the entry of special characters for mathematical and other functions easy. An early review by CNET describes that the app makes all output, which are provided as GIF images even when the service is accessed through Safari, show well on the iPhone's screen and that queries can be bookmarked and published via Twitter.
The app's price is what garners quite a bit of attention - it costs $49.99 [App Store] while the Wolfram Alpha site is free to use when accessed through a web browser, including Safari on the iPhone, and is most likely targeted at power users who need frequent access to the service for complex computations.
