Best Apps for iOS, May 2011

Honk

A parking app that may save you a ticket.

Parking apps are everywhere, so it takes something special for me to write about one. Recently I wrote about FindMyCar for Windows Phone 7 because it did one thing and did it well. This is on the other end of the Best Apps spectrum: feature-rich, but very well implemented.

As you’d expect, Honk takes a GPS position of where you parked your car, and gives you compass and map guidance back there. But it also keeps track of how much metered parking you have left — potentially saving you a parking ticket.


Not only is the remaining time simple to input, but the home screen icon shows how many minutes you have left before the meter expires. If you aren’t the type to continuously check your iPhone, an alarm will sound when the meter has nearly expired.

What about multi-storey car parks? How do you find your way back then? Well, Honk lets you make hand-written notes describing exactly where you parked. Better yet, you can scrawl these notes on a photo of your parking spot, giving you a handy visual reminder.

$1.19 > Math Game House Software

AirMusic

AirMusic is the AirPlay alternative for those without an Apple TV. It allows you to listen to the music stored on your iOS device through any DLNA compliant device — such as a PS3, Xbox 360 or a PC running Windows Media Player.


The best feature is its simplicity. Connect your iOS device to your Wi-Fi network, open the app, start up your DLNA device, and your music is there ready for you.

Note that it won’t work with older DRM-laced files bought from iTunes, but newer DRM-free purchases will play fine.

$1.19 > Plutinosoft

Total Baby

Total Baby keeps track of your new baby’s life with 13 timers and trackers, including how often Junior is feeding, requiring changing, sleeping, eating, bathing and so on. It also logs their growth, doctor visits, vaccines, allergies and more.


It supports multiple children, multiple iPhones/iPads, and is designed to keep (easily exportable) records beyond their baby years. It comes with 147 built-in descriptions and events, but you can also make your own.

Created with the baby-juggling user in mind, the interface was designed to be used one-handed. For more info, check out the video at bit.ly/gXk8Ol.

$5.99 > ANDESigned

Nomis

Sometimes your iTunes library can grow so large that it’s hard to keep track of which artists have put new music out.


Nomis is an app that alerts you of any new releases from the artists it finds in your library. It even has an icon badge showing the number of new releases found. After previewing them, you can pop over to iTunes to purchase them.

A later release will include the ability to block or add artists from notifications.

$2.49 > Taprockets