apps posts

Traditionally, when you went to purchase a cell phone you had a few features to compare but it all boiled down to the price of the phone, price of the service and ultimately network coverage.

This method of evaluating a purchase -- looking at the actual costs -- has been greatly complicated by the introduction of the iPhone and has made it much harder for consumers to choose anything other than the iPhone; even at the expense of the ability to make a phone call.

Forget comfortable shoes, energy drinks and a killer parking spot. It seems that in the quest for an optimal holiday shopping experience, iPhones and Blackberrys are the new must-have tools.

The Wall Street Journal reports that downloads of shopping apps with an emphasis on price comparison (i.e., make sure Nordstrom doesn't charge less for that pea coat before you snap it up at Bloomingdale's) are up by a whopping 77% from last year.

Despite the recession, it's still possible to make money fast. In fact, you can make millions in a matter of months. It starts when you turn on an iPhone.

Apple's genteel TV ads would have you believe that the little programs you can buy for the iPhone or the iPod Touch, called "apps," are sober-minded, highly constructive tools. In truth, though, some of the biggest profits for the people who make those little programs are pointless time-killers. Invent the right one, and you can take boredom to the bank.

This morning I braved the frosty morning to join 5-10 other shoppers in line at Verizon for the new Google-powered Motorola Droid. Sure, the Droid didn't come with nearly as much fanfare as Verizon would have hoped, and no professional line-sitters showed up like they did for the iPhone, but the release of the Droid will have a big affect on the cell phone business.

FarmVille is the most popular application on social-networking site Facebook, having attracted more than 56 million users worldwide since its introduction in June. And to what does FarmVille owe its popularity? Simply, it's addictive, according to comments by fans and users on forums across the web.

And First Lady Michelle Obama, the first cultivator of White House-grown fruits and vegetables since the days Eleanor Roosevelt, would likely be happy about that fact. That's because as a virtual farm, FarmVille allows users to manage and harvest crops and generally run a basic farm, as well as visit others' farms, perhaps giving participants greater insight in what it takes to run a real farm.

If you think all those thousands of free or low-cost iPhone apps that developers are frantically banging out are being created merely for goodwill or enjoyment, think again. As much as any other gewgaw or gimmick companies offer there is a plan that explains the madness, and it's mostly about marketing.

When Stanley Works, the famous maker of hand and power tools, developed its iPhone app, it did so with the idea of introducing the venerable brand to a new generation of consumers, the New York Times reports. Some 400,000 downloads later, the company christened the effort a success, even without knowing whether the app resulted in the single sale of a new hammer or saw.

Mobile technology can be a huge help when navigating the ivory towers this fall so it's no surprise that there are plenty of iPhone apps that are perfect for college students.

MacWorld plowed through the thousands of tip calculators and fart apps to find those that will help you save money and stay on task at school this year.

The top 10 iPhone apps for back to school include:

1. Google Mobile App
2. Stanza
3. Amazon Mobile
4. Wordbook English Dictionary and Thesaurus
5. Documents To Go
6. Mobile calculators
7. Mint.com
8. Pandora Radio
9. myHomework
10. iFlipr Flashcards

Jeff Phillips, the list compiler, provides an excellent rundown of what each application does and how it fits into your college life. Looking at all of the things that can be done on the iPhone for just a few dollars, it's hard to see how I made it through school without them. Most of the applications are free, with a few of the calculators costing a bit more.

The best part about these low priced apps is that most will save you money as well as make class easier. Stanza provides access to more than 50,000 free e-books including many popular college reading selections. Amazon Mobile makes it easy to price check your textbooks just like ShopSavvy for the Android.

Perhaps the most valuable applications are the mobile calculators and Mint.com. With the PI83 Mobile calculator you can replace a $100 TI 83 calculator with a $1 application. Finally, the Mint.com app, as well as other personal finance tracking apps, is an easy way to track finances and avoid nasty overdraft fees.

If you already have an iPod Touch or iPhone you can't afford not to have these apps loaded on your phone this fall.

Score one for Facebook users everywhere. After it was discovered that certain applications were including ads that used profile images to push "Hot Singles" the company took notice and has changed its ad approval process protecting Facebook users.

This action is a great move for the company and shows that it is willing to listen to users even if it affects its cut of advertising revenue.

The new approval process doesn't sit well with everyone. Jennifer Martinez, who reported on the issue for GigaOm, worries that the unclear nature of the ad approval process will harm the community and create a situation similar to Apple's iPhone application approval process.

Now that Apple has launched the App store for iPhones it is easier than ever to get a hold of your personal finances. Numerous companies have stepped in to fill the app store with personal finace applications ranging from free tip tools to $15 expense trackers. David at MoneyNing.com put in the effort to create a listing of many though not varied personal finance apps for the iPhone.

While there are enough tip calculators to let you eat out every night and still not have to use the same program to go dutch, split the tip and make sure you hit 20% there are quite a few worthwhile apps out there.

Applications which MoneyNing recommends include:

• Bloomberg - Free app which keeps you up to date on stocks.
• Budget - A nice budgeting tool with graphs.
• Expense2Go - Free expense tracking app which makes use of the iPhone camera.
• Mobile Banking - Free banking app for Bank of America customers.
• Pocket Money - A feature rich expense tracking program.
• Save Benjis - Free price comparison tool.

There are many more programs and further analysis of the pros and cons of each app, which is very useful since the App store currently doesn't offer any way to try out applications.

One part of successfully managing your personal finances is the ease with which you can do just that. Spending $5 to enable your iPhone to track your spending may be one of the best investments you make. Especially once you consider how much your new iPhone contract will cost you over the course of your 2 year agreement!