There's An App For That...I Think?

by Maggie McGlinchy · June 15, 2011

I've been an iPhone user since the beginning (and have proudly never owned a Blackberry, thank you very much) but I still find myself never knowing about all the "cool" apps that everyone else somehow discovers. Here's a cheat sheet of all the apps you need to have, should want to have, and will seem like a total weirdo if you don't have.

Useful Apps:

I recommend these because how many times have I told someone "Google It" or gotten super lost in NYC. (Yes, I'm one of those.)

Google Google Goggles allows you to search by taking a picture with your iPhone camera by recognizing objects and returning relevant search results. It even solves Sudoku puzzles! It also has a voice search, and uses your location to find places nearby or determine your weather.

HopStop Just like the website, this app has also saved my life multiple times. The best part is it supports new areas every month, so whether you're in New York, San Francisco, Pittsburgh, Ottawa, Paris, London, Milwaukee, or Miami, you'll be set to go. (And for all us tri-staters, the NJTransit, LIRR, and iTransNYC apps are all super helpful) For more info go HERE.

UrbanDaddy Works Like This:

Some of my other favorites include the Fandango app, WebMD app (now you can convince yourself that you have an uncurable disease on the go!), Pandora app, and the ESPN Score Center app because it texts you when "your teams" win or lose.

Totally Sweet Apps:

I mean, if you don't have these, do yourself and favor and download them. Now.

Shazaam If you don't know about Shazam, you live under a rock. I love it because I'm always the embarrassing one who likes the song that's playing in the car, but doesn't wanna be a loser and ask and then proceed to blatantly write it down. Solution? Whip out the iPhone, touch the Shazam app, and silently get all the information I need without looking like a total dweeb.

Fruit Ninja You thought Angry Birds was the best game ever? Think again. Fruit Ninja is totally addicting and is the perfect game to rub in your friends faces. "So what if you have BBM, I have Fruit Ninja suckaaaa"...How can they argue with that? Plus, once you discover how fun it is to chop fruit, you'll never feel the same way again. It's totally life changing.

FatBooth The is the funniest app of all time. Not joking. What's funnier than fat people? Nothing. Except pictures of all your friends looking fat! I have a whole Facebook album dedicated to all the people I've made victim to FatBooth. I've never seen quicker remove-tags in my life. It's the best ninety nine cents you will ever spend. I promise.

Words With Friends First of all, don't even tell me you don't like playing Scrabble, because as far as board games go, it's definitely in the top three. Secondly, nothing feels better than winning a game of Scrabble and the best part is, if its on your phone, you can dwell on a move for days! (Which can actually be annoying if you're waiting for the other person to make a move, but that's besides the point.)

HeyTell Another arguing point for your Blackberry friends, HeyTell is the same thing as a voicenote, just for iPhones. Plus, you can link it to Facebook, which can be either creepy or cool, the ball is in your court, and you can (of course) also share your location, if you'd like.

Astrology Zone *Make sure you download the Susan Miller version!* Forget all the cheesy stereotypes about zodiac signs that you may have heard before, because this app knows all. Some of its unusual features include astro car style guide, vacation tips, gift guide, stress guide, and quick match lounge guide. (I'm an Aries by the way, so feel free to pyschoanalyze as you please)

DoodleBuddy James Franco uses it, so it's automatically cool, right? It's a lot like the "Paint" program in Windows, except this one has stamps too. (Sooo kewl!!!!!) My favorite feature is you can take a picture that you took on your phone and doodle on it. So if you wanna draw devil horns on your ex, go right ahead and post it to Facebook.

iMapMyRUN For all you aspiring marathoners, or even just us averages joes, iMapMyRUN tells you everything you could ever possibly want to know about your run. It can map your distance and your route, track your friends, allow you to share your time on Twitter or Facebook, keep a training log, and a "social activity feed to motivate and inspire friends", i.e. "Get out of bed and run, fatass!"

SoundPrism A totally hipster way to make music (*cue eye roll) but it actually is pretty fun once you get into it. Even if you have no prior music knowledge, the way the app works makes it really easy to figure out (think music making for dummies) and you can even sing into it, once you decide you've made some pretty sweet beats. Now all you have to do is record and share!

Taco Bell Locator App This is hands down my favorite app. No question. Nothing can stand between me and my Crunchwrap Supreme at 1am because not only will I now know how where the nearest Taco Bell is but I will also have directions to give the poor soul who has to drag my ass there. It is the best app ever created. Ever.