Mobile phone applications can seem quite annoying if you have, say, a Blackberry.
I am an avid Blackberry user, but as I’m still not GPRS, thanks to T-Mobile not supporting the Edge network, using any sort of app almost seems pointless. However, after testing out and falling in love with the HTC Legend, I am now a bit of a a Droid Market tramp.
I never understood how awesome apps were, and it wasn't until I downloaded a handful of apps like FX Camera, Google Goggles and Seesmic for Twitter that I finally believed that mobile applications for the iPhone and Android-powered phones are totally the way forward.
Using mobile applications changes the way you do things, and how your brain works, just in the way using a new gadget or bit of technology does. (“I can do THIS with it! And THAT with it! And wouldn’t it be good if I could...”) So, naturally, I now have a wishlist of mobile phone apps I’d love to see someone develop.
Top five mobile phone applications we’d love to see:
1) The 'Where did you get that?' App
What it does: This nifty augmented reality application can scan what someone is wearing, and then tell you where their clothes are from.
Why it’s useful: How many times have you spotted something someone was wearing, and either been too shy to ask where they got it from, or they were too far away for you to chase down and ask? Now you don’t have to! You can just look semi-creepy, hold your phone up to them, give ‘em a scan, and then find out if that dress is from Topshop or vintage!
2) The 'Degrees of Separation' App
What it does: Using face recognition technology, this apps scans the face of someone at a pub or at a dinner party, goes through your contacts/followers/friends and tells you if you have friends in common, or perhaps how you know this person, and what their name is. For example: “Your friend Sarah Brinwell knows Bob Smith on Facebook. You have three friends in common.”
Why it’s useful: I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been at an event or a party and seen someone I recognize or think I’m connected to online, but can’t remember. It would be so useful to just scan their face in, and see if I follow them on Twitter, if I’ve seen them in one of my friend’s Facebook photos.
3) The 'What You’ve Got In' App
What it does: Scans the ingredients in your cupboard or refrigerator and give you recipe options for what you could cook.
Why it’s useful: How many times have you looked in to your cupboard, and all you could find is an onion, a tomato, and some rice, and not known what to make out of it? If you’re Nigella, this will be no problem. However, if you’re not big on cooking and really don’t fancy going to the grocery store, this app could not only teach you how to cook new recipes, but teach you how to look at what you have in differently.
4) The 'Was it Something I said?' App
What it does: Scans body language of person you’re talking to or someone in a meeting and gives analysis of what their body language is saying.
Why it’s useful: How many times are you in a meeting or on a date and you’re wondering what the other person is thinking? Obviously, their body language can be a big clue into their inner thoughts and feelings, but unless you're a profiler, it can be difficult to interpret what people are actually feeling while they talk to you.
5) The 'What the Hell is This?' App
What it does: Reads/scans a menu in English or any other language, and tells you what’s in a meal, and what it looks like.
Why it’s useful: If I’m ever at a restaurant other than McDonalds or Pizza Express, I get a bit nervous. I get especially nervous if Macaroni & Cheese and/or Corndogs is not on the menu. And this is precisely why an app like this would come in handy: so I don’t panic when looking at a menu with far more superior taste in cuisine than I possess – or if it’s in a language other than English and I can’t figure out what the heck fromage is.
So there you have it. The top five mobile phone applications we would love to see created. So come on developers! Get on it!
Image via lwallenstein's Flickr