read all posts in book reviews read all posts in entertainment read all posts in get local: houston read all posts in motherhood Read all posts in Personal Read all posts in Product Reviews Read all posts in Tech Read all posts in Travel Image Map

Top Ten {Tuesday}: The First 10 Apps I Downloaded for My iPhone

Posted by on Aug 23, 2010 in Apps, Featured, iPhone | 19 comments

Top Ten Tuesday, from ohamanda.com

(for more Top Ten Tuesday posts, visit ohamanda.com)

I have never owned an iAnything, so when I won an iTouch at the BlogHer’10 Conference, I was excited, but still among the unconverted.  Honestly, I even left the thing in its box until I got home.  But once the seal was broken…oh…I was in deep.  The books to read!  The games to play!  The music to listen to!  Everything at your fingertips, literally!

We have two teens with cell phones, and we had been recently discussing a change in plans.  On a whim, I researched an option for putting our 16yo on a family plan with me, giving her my new Samsung Jack, and getting an iPhone for myself.  Surprisingly enough, it was doable.  I’ve had my iPhone for four whole days, and I LOVE IT!  I even ordered a lovely new skin for it, the gorgeous GelaSkin Bookshelf by Colin Thomspon:

25_ColinThompson_Bookshelf_500-white

(this just SCREAMS "me"!)

And of course once you get your iPhone (or iTouch), you’ve got to load it down with APPS, right? (of course!)  We’re probably all pretty particular about our apps, based on our needs and interests and taste, but I thought I’d share with you 10 of the First Apps I Downloaded for My iPhone.

  1. LDS Gospel Library. (free)  Being able to have my scriptures so readily available is a blessing.  This powerful app allows you to quickly follow cross references and footnotes, search for any term or phrase across all databases, make notes on particular verses, and more – all making for a very rich scripture study experience.  It also includes a database of General Conference and Sunday Curriculum materials.
  2. Twitter. (free) Well, duh.
  3. Facebook. (free) Double duh.
  4. Words with Friends. (free version – there are small, unobtrusive banner ads)  I downloaded this at the suggestion of my sister, and I’m loving it!  It’s basically a version of Scrabble you can play with other users, and right now I have four games going.  I can see it might get addicting.
  5. Cozi Family Organizer. ($1.99)  I’ve loved using Cozi online for keeping our family’s hectic schedule organized, and now having the added convenience of the iPhone app is just awesome.  When my kids bombard me with information as they get into the car after school, I can quickly tap it all into my schedule and not forget anything.
  6. Goodreads. (free)  I can’t be trusted to remember what I ate for breakfast, let alone that book I heard about from a friend last week.  I love that I can get right into my account, add a book I want to read, and be able to retrieve that list later when I’m at the bookstore or library.
  7. Stanza.  (free)  MANY thanks to my friend Andrea, who suggested this app.  It’s basically an e-reader with a catalogue of tons of books you can buy, but even more books that are FREE, thanks to several partners, including Project Gutenberg. 
  8. Pandora. (free)  My husband had never heard of Pandora before downloading the app to our iTouch – shocking, but true.  This genius of modern programming technology is your own personal radio station, built around artists you like.  It’s a MUST for any iTouch or iPhone, in my opinion.
  9. Monkey Preschool Lunchbox. ($0.99)  Of course my 2yo wants to play with my iPhone, so I figured I’d download something for him, too.  I never anticipated how cute and fun this particular app would be, though!  It’s a colorful, musical preschool game that teaches letters and numbers, has matching and puzzle games, and rewards kids with cute e-stickers for their achievements.  My son LOVES it.
  10. Pocket Piano. ($0.99 – link is to HD version, but ours is just plain)  This is another app for keeping my son happy in the grocery cart at the store.  He is strangely fascinated by it and gets quite pleased with himself for “playing” the piano, and I have to tell you – the tone is lovely and easy to listen to.

Now of course I don’t *just* have 10 apps on my phone – I’ve added others, like apps for my U-verse and Chase accounts, Redbox, The Weather Channel, and others, but I think this is a healthy start.  I’d love to hear more suggestions, though, so – PLEASE, LAY IT ON ME! – what are your favorite apps for your iPhone/iTouch?

You might also enjoy these related posts from Tree, Root, and Twig:

  1. Review: Cube Dog App for iPhone
  2. Moby: A Location-Based, Personal Security App for iPhone
  3. Review: the 360 Panorama App for iPhone

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

468 ad
  • http://theadventureofmotherhood.blogspot.com/ Janna

    I’m tempted but truth be told I don’t even have a cell at the moment. It cracks me up whenever I hear “There’s an app for that.” Is there anything that phone can’t do?

  • Anonymous

    I just want an iTouch or iPhone or iPad! Anything “i”! :) Congrats on winning your iTouch – I’m hoping to “upgrade” to an iPhone the next time our phone contract comes up for renewal – unless I win one between now and then! :)

  • http://impressyourkids.com ohamanda {impress your kids}

    So fun! I don’t have an iPhone b/c I’m afraid I’ll ignore my children for the rest of their lives…do they have an app for that?!

  • http://impressyourkids.com ohamanda {impress your kids}

    Oh and my suggestion? My husband has this talking Hal (or Bart, or something) where a little cartoon character mimics your voice. And it cracks me up. Seriously, I’m smiling just thinking about it.

  • http://www.permissiontoperuse.com Amy Bennett

    Oh boy…I’m on iPhone junkie…let’s get started here…
    all the music…iheartradio, vevo, pandora
    fun cameras like Hipstamatic or QuadCamera
    CardStar and Tip Calculator
    FlightTrack, mSecure, Air Sharing, RedLaser (you will LOVE that)
    WhitePages, Ypmobile, imdb, wikipanion, fedex mobile
    showtimes
    evernote
    Starbucks
    Bump
    Games – coolfacts, tris, sudoku, sol free, angry birds, scrabble

    Whew. Hope it helps!

  • http://twitter.com/CoziFamily Cozi

    This is awesome! We are so glad Cozi is helping you stay on top of your busy life and was one of the first apps you downloaded. And Stacey – I love Words With Friends too, so look for me and we’ll play, OK?
    Carol @cozifamily

  • http://treerootandtwig.com Stacey @ Tree, Root, and Twig

    Hi Carol! I love Cozi, and love spreading the word about it. It honestly helps me SO much in my daily life! Oh, and DM me your Words with Friends username on Twitter. Or is it just your first/last name? We’ll get connected and start playing – I love it! :)

  • http://treerootandtwig.com Stacey @ Tree, Root, and Twig

    Now that’s what I’m talkin’ about! :) Thanks so much for this list, Amy! I’ve checked out many of them and think I like Hipstamatic and Wikipanion the best. I never even thought about something like RedLaser – I’d love to know why you love it so much. It looks most useful for price comparisons – is that how you use it? Such great suggestions, thank you!!

  • http://treerootandtwig.com Stacey @ Tree, Root, and Twig

    So far, no “Mommy Clone So Real Mommy Can Play” app (that I’m aware of). :) I’ve been surprisingly disciplined with mine, and even let my kids play with it quite a bit. I think I’ve only used it as an actual PHONE once or twice! Ha!

  • http://treerootandtwig.com Stacey @ Tree, Root, and Twig

    I am going to Google this. It sounds wickedly entertaining. (ps: apparently it’s called SmackTalk. this could be fun….)

  • http://treerootandtwig.com Stacey @ Tree, Root, and Twig

    It seems like there’s always some contest floating around Twitter for an iTouch/iPhone/iPad. Good luck to you!

  • http://treerootandtwig.com Stacey @ Tree, Root, and Twig

    So far it has yet to do my laundry, but I’m sure there’s a team of dedicated mothers/engineers working on that. ;)

  • http://www.permissiontoperuse.com Amy Bennett

    RedLaser is sort of like Goodreads. I use it to scan items that I see I want. Great for birthday/Christmas lists and it tells you where online or near you where to get it cheapest so it’s perfect!

  • http://treerootandtwig.com Stacey @ Tree, Root, and Twig

    Aha – now I get it! Very cool! This would be incredibly useful, since – as I said – I forget things left and right. At first I thought it was just for price comparisons, but if it can generate a sort of “wish list” and then give me prices when I’m ready to buy (for birthday/Christmas, like you said), then that’s perfect. I just downloaded it!

  • http://merryanddewey.blogspot.com Merry120

    I soooooo want an iPhone but I have to carry a Blackberry for work so I totally can’t justify another phone for no reason other than apps & Twitter!!! I do have an iTouch and have it loaded with apps for me and my 3 yr old Evan. Some faves are Sodoku, Train Conductor2:USA (SO ADDICTIVE), CakeDoodle (for Evan), Tilt to Live, Elmo’s Monster Maker (so cute for Evan).

  • Dallas

    I like Shazam. When you hear a song you like but don’t know you click on Shazam and it tells you the name and artist, saves it in a “wish list” and links you to different sites where you can buy/download it.

  • http://youravon.com/ahowell7747 SpitFire

    I think we need to invent something that lets you wash the kids, dishes & laundry all at the same time.

  • Stacey @ Tree, Root, and Twig

    I’ll be honest with you, I’ve used the *phone* function maybe three or four times – it may as well just be an iTouch! :) I checked out all your suggestions – we downloaded the Train Conductor app and it’s really neat. I’ve got Elmo’s Monster Maker on my list, too, as soon as my son grows out of his obsession with the SmackTalk! app (that’s ALL he’s been playing with lately). :)

  • http://treerootandtwig.com Stacey @ Tree, Root, and Twig

    Okay, now that is really, REALLY cool! How do they program this stuff – it’s crazy! Thanks for the suggestion – now I just have to keep the girls from hogging the phone in order to try and use this app. :)

Our Life in Instagrams