MANILA Philippines – Aside from a phone that’s a music/video player and Internet browser, part of what makes the iPhone permanently glued to my hand is the app factor. An app, short for application, is a program add-on to the existing stock applications of an iPhone.

Apps are categorized according to usage (e.g. productivity, games, utilities). Barely a year old, the iTunes App Store which launched July last year, is currently approaching the one billionth app sold mark (one billionth downloader gets a prize). Having applied my shopaholic nature to purchasing apps, I’ve amassed quite a few, buying some based on cuteness, usefulness, and some for sheer curiosity. As of last count, I have 219 applications, with only a small fraction being used frequently.

1. Maps (Stock app)

Though a built-in application of the iPhone, I must say that this has been the most helpful app I’ve encountered when travelling. Speaking as someone who almost ended a friendship after confidently telling a friend I knew how to get to Ateneo via C5 years ago (the car became deathly silent when the airport suddenly loomed ahead of us), my sense of direction is deplorable (except when in a mall). On the eve of my first trip abroad (Hong Kong, by myself), my friends took me to dinner and sat me down to give me a stern rundown of how to find my way there complete with a map with their notes.

Ever since I got the iPhone, I have never, ever gotten lost in a foreign country I’ve visited (providing Google Maps has an accurate map). Before I’d leave, I’d bookmark my itinerary (usually shops) and just load it up when I get to my destination. It showed me the closest way to get on foot from my hotel to Champs-Elysees on a trip to Paris, I was able to find the restaurant serving yummy fish head curry in Farrer Park in Singapore, and I unerringly found H&M in Hong Kong.

Recently, I had discovered that the Metro Manila map has been added to the Google Maps roster, and it is very accurate. Though no exact driving directions can still be provided, it shows everything down to the last detail (you can even check where the nearest Jollibee is).

With its GPS feature (on the iPhone 3G) you can actually pinpoint your current location to make navigation much easier.

2. iManila

A home-grown app, this is a very handy directory to have of various restaurants & shops around the Metro. I love this app because I was able to hunt down this cute cardigan I wanted that wasn’t available in the Makati store & found in Shangri-La mall.

3. Kindle for iPhone (price: Free)

When the real Kindle first came out, I once again bemoaned the fact that the Americans are so lucky that they can instantly get their hands on such great gadgets. When the iPhone version was released I was over the moon.

Though there are a lot of better e-book readers for the iPhone (Stanza & eReader which are also in my iPhone), the strength of the Kindle really is in its selection. Amazon has one of the biggest and best-priced e-book selections out there, whose release dates are up-to-date. While purchasing books is currently available for US residents only, this can easily be solved by making nice with a friend or relative based in the US (a US-based credit card is needed). Though the iPhone’s screen is pretty small vs the original Kindle, it does make for better reading of colored books since the current Kindle machine only supports gray scale e-ink. Currently on my Kindle app is Stephen King’s UR, a novella made specifically for Kindle about an eerie pink Kindle.

4. Camera Bag

When my friends started going Lomo-loco, I was extremely jealous of the great photos they kept uploading, but couldn’t find the time or the patience to lug around four different kinds of cameras with different effects. When I stumbled on Camera Bag, I had to buy it right away. It’s an app that applies different lomographic effects to your photos. Sure, the photo size is small, but it sure is nice to think that you have something in your pocket that can make calls and take lomographic photographs.

5. Facebook (price: Free)

It lets you update your status, snoop on the goings-on of your contacts’ lives, make snarky or witty comments depending on your mood and add or ignore friend requests, whenever and wherever you are (with mobile Internet service).

6. Twitterena ($0.99) + qTweeter (Cydia app, unlimited status updates after a donation)

With my addiction to Twitter, it is understandable that I am the Goldilocks of Twitter apps for the iPhone, i.e. one’s too complicated, one loads slowly, one’s too ugly, one has an icky-looking icon (yes, I’ve bought many a useless app just ’cause the icon was so adorable). Twitterena is my nth Twitter app, and I like it because it includes the most basic features (profile viewing, following/unfollowing, retweeting, posting pics), and best of all it has a cute icon and an even cuter interface. Coupled with qTweeter, a jailbreak app (apps that work only on jailbroken iPhones, a popular underground “hack”) which lets me update my Twitter/Facebook status from within any app, I fully expect bouts of Twitterhea soon, especially during lull times at shoots.

7. Skype (price: Free)

This is a must-have app for those who travel frequently. Nothing sours a return trip home than seeing your phone bill and the exorbitant amount you have to cough up for roaming rates. Skype lets you make free Skype-to-Skype calls on your wi-fi connected iPhone. This is also perfect for couples in long-distance relationships. It’ll be like he/she never left.

8. Cooking Mama

It took Nintendo by storm and now it’s making me resent calls while I’m cooking seafood spaghetti on my iPhone. Be careful though, some cooking methods employ the use of the accelerometer, the iPhone’s motion detector of sorts. In my excitement to sift flour properly, my iPhone flew out of my hands and skidded on a, thankfully carpeted floor.

9. Newsstand

For those of you who like to be constantly updated on your favorite websites wherever you are, then an RSS reader for the iPhone is what you need. I like that Newsstand lets you tweet articles of interest and you can organize your websites into folders (e.g. Tech/Beauty/Gossip/Blogs).

10. Style.com

This app keeps me abreast of the latest collections showing on the runway, and helps me keep updated on what makeup looks are being shown on the catwalk, which makes it very useful for work.