I thought I’d be one of the first to jump on the “upgrade your iPhone” bangwagon. It seems that I’ve been able to ward off the itch because of all the wonderful things my old iPhone is now able to do. Yes, I’ve gotten all those crazy offers for my old iPhone making the upgrade free…but I’m avoiding that route. Why? Because I know all those phones will be heading to Latin America where they are able to sell them for over $1,000. Yes, you heard correctly…they get 1 grand each as the demand for these phone is high down south.
The reason for this new found love affair (round 2) is mostly because of the addition of the applications. Now, for right now, I’ve only explored the FREE apps….but this is what I think thus far.
- Jott - an amazing little app that voice records what you have to say and via the internet, transcribes all that you entered into it.
- Shazam - you put the mouthpiece of you phone on a speaker while a song is playing and via voice-recognition, it finds the song and adds it to you iTunes suggestions the next time you log in.
- Box Office - this apps allows you to find a movie and/or theatre near you and allows a seamless purchase of tickets via Fandango.
- Banner Free - turns the face of your iPhone into a scrolling screen.
- Magic 8 Ball - cool for those that can’t make up their mind or need constant consultations on the go. Turn your phone over just like the game and it reveals your answer.
- Bof A - stay connected to your checking/savings account with this nifty little app.
- Paypal and Ebay - great for getting your bid on and getting your new toys home.
- Facebook and My Space apps - great for staying connected for those of us with social networking addictions like mine.
Given the resources that Apple has made available to developers of these apps to encourage adoption, it will be interesting to see how these apps will begin to change and shape our lives. In addition, marketers will need to master how to integrate these into their business plans because it is the future of how consumers will interact with brands.
