Top iOS apps for the everyday Pinoy

"There's an app for that!" Apple's advertisements for the iPhone usually say. But are there apps in Apple's celebrated app store made specifically for Filipinos? Of course there are! As of early this year, there were already over 380,000 applications available for download in the App Store. A beginning iPhone or iPod Touch user could get lost in this labyrinthine mecca of apps for the iOS platform, which is why GMA News has collated some of the more noteworthy applications that are sure to tickle the typical Pinoy's fancy. We've eliminated the usual apps (no Angry Birds here!), and instead focused on those that the common Juan or Juana might find engaging, interesting, or just plain useful: 10. Magic Sing Song Index (Free) There's no disputing it: Pinoys love to sing. And, while there are no videoke apps on the App Store just yet (notwithstanding a limited Glee app with songs from the show that you can sing along with), this is the next best thing. For owners of a Magic Sing (that cordless microphone wonder that can be connected to a television set to turn it into a videoke machine), you know how skimming through thick wads of paper just to find that one song you want can sometimes be too daunting a task —especially when you're already raring to go at it with the microphone. Chips currently installed on your Magic Sing unit can be toggled on and off so that the songs on the chip can be loaded on to the app. After which, you can easily breeze through the Artist list to look for your favorite Madonna hit, or search for "Total Eclipse of the Heart" on the Songs tab. Clicking on a song title will give you its Magic Sing code, which you can then enter on your unit to play the song. A Favorites tab has recently been added to the app, so you can easily dogear "All By Myself" and "Alone" when you're feeling a bit lonesome on a Friday night. 9. Philippines Radio ($0.99) Your regulation iPhone or iPod Touch unit doesn't normally come with an FM radio chip, but as Apple always says —there's an app for that! The Philippines Radio app brings a constant stream of music flowing through your iPhone while you go lazily through traffic or while sipping your morning coffee. It currently features most of the radio stations available on the local airwaves, including a host of regional stations in Cebu, Davao, Dagupan and Iloilo, among many others, piped to your phone through WiFi or a 3G data signal. But this isn't just a radio app. It comes with a few bells and whistles too, including the ability to make the radio turn on at a set time, or to record your favorite radio shows and transfer them to your computer. You can also add favorite radio stations at the taskbar at the bottom of the app, with quirkily and thoughtfully designed icons to boot! Priced at just under a dollar, this app could be a big boon to our overseas Filipino workers who want to be updated with local happenings even while abroad. 8. Pinoy Lotto (Free) Who doesn't want to get rich? Just like Filipino-American Bruno Mars, we know that most Pinoys dream of becoming billionaires someday. And what better —and quicker— way to reach that dream than by entering the lottery, right? Luckily, there's an app that can help you with just that. No, not with getting huge sums of money quick (looks like there's not an app for everything after all), but with entering the lottery. While entering the lottery is such an easy-peasy task, thinking of numbers to tick off can be just as hard as getting rich, especially if you're a regular bettor. Currently, the app features the four regular draws of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office, namely the Grand Lotto 6/55, the Mega Lotto 6/45, the Lotto 6/42 and the Super Lotto 6/49. If you're undecided about what numbers to enter (or you've simply run out of relatives' birthdays and other significant dates), just shake your iPhone and the app will automatically produce six random numbers. That the recent money pot is displayed on top of the app will just make you shake your phone even more vigorously (be careful not to accidentaly throw it, though). What's more, once the draw is over, you will automatically get the winning numbers through the app. The only thing we saw lacking with the app is an automatic notification if ever you bag the hundred-million jackpot prize. If we may suggest, best to make it as loud an alarm as possible —one that could wake up an entire household sleeping in the middle of the night. 7. LawJuan ($9.99) As the old saying goes, "ignorance of the law excuses no one." Don't let yourself be caught in a tough situation just because you don't know the law. Every day, unscrupulous individuals are out to bend the limits of the law, so it's best to have a legal guide in handy —and LawJuan is quite handy indeed. Lawyers and legal researchers aren't the only ones who can benefit much from this app. After all, it wouldn't hurt to have all of the country's statutes at your fingertips if ever you come face to face with a legal situation. LawJuan carries more than 10,000 Republic Acts, 2,000 presidential decrees, and 800 Batas Pambansa —all of which be searched, bookmarked, annotated, highlighted and shared at your convenience. Law students often buy or photocopy volumes of books needed for law school; having these kinds of information in one app can not only help their studies, but ease the costs as well. A version containing only the constitutions of the Philippines is available as a free download, if ever you don't want to dive into all the legalese. 6. ClickTheCity (Free) Can't decide where to eat out tonight? Let this app help you. Wanna know which movies are showing this week? Hey, this app has that! Want to just lounge on your sofa and be a couch potato all day? Got that too. The app version of ClickTheCity.com brings to your palms all the content and updates of the popular lifestyle and events website—and then some more. What makes this app a cut above the rest of the lifestyle apps on the App Store (aside from highly localized content) is the NearMe function, which you can click to see what's hip and happening, or what good deals are available, near your location. Another noteworthy feature of the ClickTheCity app is Privileges, which gives you discounts and other privileges to different restaurants and establishments around the metro. Couple that with the NearMe function, and you'll be on your merry way to dining and wining tonight on the cheap! 5. Manila Map and Walking Tours ($4.99) If you're feeling like exploring the city on foot, this is the app for you. While places in Manila are pretty much common knowledge for everybody, not everyone has had the experience to dive into the city's rich history and heritage. Consider it like having Carlos Celdran in your pocket. This app will guide you to places in Manila you may have never seen before, including various museums, churches, markets and nightlife venues, among others. Its full version includes detailed maps of the tour as well as turn-by-turn directions that will guide you from one site to the next. Download the free version if you simply want to know the sites included in the tour. An interesting app for Pinoys who would like to know more about the nation's capital, foreign tourists are likely to benefit the most from this. 4. Papago! Philippines ($30.99) GPS devices for cars are not exactly selling like hotcakes in the Philippines, unlike in neighboring countries such as Singapore and China. And they're not exactly cheap, too: a unit can cost from P10,000 to P20,000, depending on features. So how can directionally challenged Pinoys find their way on a budget? Enter the Papago! Philippines app. At just a fraction of the cost of most GPS devices, you'll get turn-by-turn voice navigation, an intelligent search function for any chosen destination, and 3D buildings to boot (comes at an additional price, though). The best thing about the app is that it doesn't use your Internet data allowance since it utilizes the built-in GPS unit instead, so there's no added cost. Map data are also downloaded onto the phone, so you can use it anytime and anywhere, even when offline. If you're looking for a free alternative, the closest thing would have to be the Philippines Offline Street Map, which offers a complete and accurate depiction of streets in the Philippines minus the navigation features. 3. LasangPinoy ($1.99) Filipino recipes often get passed down from one generation to another, giving birth to some "secret" recipes that have made fortunes for some restaurant owners. LasangPinoy lets you in on those secrets. It comes pre-loaded with about 80 recipes for various Filipino dishes, and also gives you the opportunity to make your own recipe and share it with other users of the app. With this feature, you can now see whether one mother's Ilocano recipe for Adobong Manok is better than that from a father in Davao, or if your Sinigang na Baboy fares better than the anyone else's. An alternative to this app is Uncle Boy's Filipino Recipes ($0.99), which offers a host of Filipino recipes divided into different categories such as beef, chicken, pork, seafood and noodles, among others. 2. Tawag Pinoy ($1.99) The Philippines is undisputedly the texting capital of the world, and we have the more than 70 million mobile subscribers in the country to thank for that. But calls are starting to gain popularity in the country, thanks to unique offers by local telcos that bundle voice credits with text promos. For those voracious subscribers of unlimited and bucket-based promos from telcos, Tawag Pinoy will be a pretty convenient app. It is a more advanced address book, which can separate your contacts based on the network they are on (Smart, Globe or Sun) —so you don't inadvertently call friends from other networks while you're on an unlimited plan and rack up your phone bill. The app features a T9 dialer, which you can use to search for specific contacts or to dial a particular number. Users would also find that calling their contacts without memorizing specific prefixes (for mobile call promos) is a very helpful feature. How many times did you have to ask someone which code to use to avail of a promo, right? Interestingly, users can also easily send load and GCash (if you're on the Globe network) through the app, as well as separate contacts into certain groups should the need to group-text the gang arrive. 1. Tong-Its Xtreme ($0.99) What iPhone app list would be complete without a gaming application? And what better way to cap off this list than with a truly Pinoy application at that: Tong-Its Xtreme is probably one of the very few apps in the App Store that has a unique Filipino appeal to it. The game features multiple Artificial Intelligence engines that can be calibrated to suit your handicap level—from conservative ones to aggressive AI players. The game becomes more exciting with the introduction of a payment scheme (because money always makes things more exciting), which goes higher as the level progresses. If you're good enough, different achievement badges will be displayed on the game's home screen, which can range from varsity to super grandmaster. The game is Game Center-enabled as well, which means you can compare scores with other players around the world. The app is fine by itself, definitely as manageable as playing Tong-Its in real life, but an option for multiplayer gameplay would be a good addition to the game so friends could join in when you find yourselves idle on a road trip, or during Friday-night drinking binges. — TJD/HS, GMA News