My wife just got an iPhone.  She’s nice — she lets me play with it.

Here are some of the fun APPs I am using. Most are free. Some are 99 cents.

Google: It’s fun to be able to look up things on Google wherever we are.  While walking in the park, and I want to know the name of the duck we just saw.  While driving, and we want to know more about the town we just passed.

Star Walk:  With this APP you can identify and locate any star, planet, constellation, etc. at night, or even during the daytime. 

Flickster:  When on the road, we sometimes want to know what movies are playing, and where, and what the “Tomatometer” rating is.

Weather:  This APP lets me see what the weather will be this week.

Translator:  I like to make up phrases in English, and see and hear the translations in Spanish, French, German, Russian, Polish.

Netflix:  I can watch shows in bed — with earphones — holding the iPhone about 12 inches from my eyes.

Yelp and Around Me:  I can find whatever I want that is around me, or around some other place I’m visiting.

KRLA 870: I can listen to Dennis Prager while waiting in line or walking to the corner.

Dragon Go:  If I am lazy, I can speak my directions into the iPhone and find almost anything.

MapQuest:  Turn by turn voice directions while driving or walking.

Skype:  Haven’t used it yet, but look forward to Skyping with the grandson while I’m in the park, 3,000 miles away.

Pandora:  I can listen free to any music I choose. 

Leafsnap:  What kind of tree is that?  Now I can usually know by scanning in a leaf and seeing the results.  Usually, because the pictured leaves are from the Eastern U.S.

Shazam:  Let it hear 10 seconds of any music, and it tells you the title and lots of other information.

ShopSavvy:  I scan in a barcode, and learn where I can get the product for less.  It’s usually at Target or Wal-Mart — and that’s just fine with me.

Fooducate:  Either scan in the barcode or enter the product name and a wealth of food information appears.  It often tells you that the best “alternative” food is a fruit or veggie.

Mr. Ebsen may be contacted at Robertebsen@hotmail.com