Our pick of the most practical apps on the market

Apps are no longer a young person game. A lot of companies have started to do apps to make people’s lives much easier but with so many on offer it can be challenging to find one that suits your needs. So we\’ve gathered together some of the most practical apps around.

Halo – This practical taxi app has been around for a while and the beauty of it is that it’s used around the world as well. It prides itself on having been created by drivers for drivers. This takes the hassle out of finding a cab by using the GPS on your phone to pinpoint your location. When you hit the “Pick Me Up Here” button, drivers nearby are given the opportunity to accept the pick-up. The mechanics of Halo takes into account traffic and how long it will take the cab to get to you, especially handy for airport runs. The passenger is sent a picture of the driver and his details for those who are concerned about safety and there\’s the added benefit of being able to pay by card if you prefer.

The Irish Radioplayer app – This is the newest introduction to the Irish app market, having recently been launched by every celebrity in Ireland available at short notice. It’s available for free from radioplayer.ie, the iTunes App Store and Google Play Store. Listeners have access to 43 Irish radio channels in total including RTÉ FM, digital radio stations, local, regional and national commercial stations. So there\’s no excuse for not knowing what the weather is.

Golfshot – This is one for the golf enthusiast amongst you. It\’s created specifically for iphones and uses GPS capabilities to basically improve your golf game. It\’s supports over 40,000 golf courses worldwide and is able to track the distance of your shot, view layouts, gives tips on approaching shots, keeps scores and statistics and much more. The only downside is you can\’t use it in golfing competitions, it gets disabled. If only such a feature existed for table quiz’s.

Electric Ireland – have a few apps all geared towards allowing you to have more control over your energy usage. The first most useful is the \’electric Ireland meter reading app\’. This handy little app allows you to submit your own meter readings and Get emergency ESB Networks contact details. It will eliminate your estimation electricity bills while giving you 24 hour access to your account. It also allows you to submit others people\’s meter readings. Another good one is the appliance calculator app. This gives you greater control over your home energy costs by finding out how much your home appliances cost to run. Simply select your appliances and how much you use them to pinpoint the real energy guzzlers in your home and start understanding and controlling your costs.

Runpee – This quirky little app is for when you\’re in the cinema and need to pee during a movie. You simply press the movie you\’re viewing and it\’ll tell you when is the best time to go to the toilet during it so that you don\’t miss any of the action or storyline. It even gives you a brief summary of what you\’re missing so you can catch up on the toilet or just to enjoy some light reading material. It also has a couple of other handy features such as if there\’s anything to see during or after the credits. This I suspect is aimed at the Marvel lovers amongst us. Also if you press its timer when the movie begins, it\’ll give a vibration before each pee break. You\’ll never again have to utter the words \’What did I miss?\’ or \’I thought she was a goodie?\’

Pumps.ie – is an online guide to petrol and diesel prices for around the country. Not only can you use it but you also help others by enter prices yourself by registering at pumps.ie. It allows you to see what stations are closest to you and the where the cheapest prices around are. You can rank them by distance or price and keep an eye on your frequently visited stations for price changes using your watch list.

Just eat – This is a personal favourite of mine. Whether you\’re using the app on your phone or using the just-eat website, this take the hassle out of ordering take away. You simply enter your area and the type of food you want and it brings up all the options nearby. You then order off the menu and have the option to either pay by card or cash on delivery. With over 1250 eateries to choose from, you\’ll never regret not taking Home Economics again. The biggest challenge with this is that you still, unfortunately, have to answer the door to receive it but if they can out a man on the moon?

Tides near me – is a useful app if you\’re into outdoor activities such as fishing, angling or photography. It focuses on nearby tide stations and current tidal conditions. Quickly learn the time of the last and next tide, as well as when the sun and moon will rise or set. Fully automated tide tables, charts, and predictions.

MapAlerter – MapAlerter is a free alert service for people living in Ireland who want to receive important notifications from their County or City Council by text message, email, social media and through this App. You can register for a free MapAlerter account using this App where you can manage your account and identify the areas for which you wish to be alerted. The MapAlerter model is perfect for people who wish to receive timely warning of any Council issue that may impact on their day, such as Water Disruptions or Commute Route Disruption. You can choose what categories you want alerted about as well as input two areas for notifications such as home and work. You can also use it to submit local issues such as graffiti, littering or leaks.

Dublin bus – While it’s received some criticisms when it was first launch, it’s since been improved and now has some handy little features such as real time information and route planner. You simply type in your bus number, the directions it’s going in and the stop you want to go from, which can be found in one of three ways, and it will tell you when your next bus is due. You can also plan ahead with their handy timetables or find your nearest stop. There\’s also an Irish rail version for darts and trains.

YOTV – This is like an updated RTE Guide for your phone except without the Fair City cast interviews. So win win all round! It allows you to have access to a customized schedule for any cable, satellite, or broadcast provider, and you\’ll never miss your favourite shows again as you can set alerts or add them to your calendar. There\’s also a nifty Now and Next view so you can see what\’s on across all channels at a glance. This app has a user ratings feature, a search option, info button and is available in 16 languages.

Evernote – This is my go-to app. You can use it to fit your needs. Some people use it to organize web articles, documents, photos and to discuss their work with others. I use it to remind me to buy toilet rolls. It\’s like a portable notebook and has a feature for writing checklists that even allows you to tick the boxes when you\’re done. Very Satisfying! The first time you use it, you login so that even when you change phones or computers you can still access your notes anytime, anywhere. There\’s a label and category option which can be colour coded. I recommend holiday list and Things to buy when you have the money. You can record a note if typing not your thing and its very user friendly.