An App a Day
If you need to find buried treasure, there’s a map for that. If you need to ask a jolly man for gifts, there’s a lap for that. If you need to pay homage to your favorite discount store, there’s a rap for that.
But what if you need to figure out the price of all those multicolored sushi dishes piling up at Genki? Oh, yes, there’s an app for that.
Hawai‘i’s local app designers have been busy. Here, a list of the ripest fruits of their Apple labors.
One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue FishSushiCalc, made by local app designers Mousetrapps, helps you keep track of your bill at conveyer belt style sushi joints. Just drag colored plates on to your virtual tray, and the app keeps tabs on your tab, leaving you free to focus on more important things, like snagging that new spicy ahi roll before the fatty at the end of the bar grabs it. Available at the iTunes store for $0.99. Need it? Click here.
You Speak Bird? Hawai'i Five-O writers take note; there’s an app to tell you when it’s appropriate to use "da kine," and who exactly you can call "cuz." The brainchild of local radio personality Lanai Tabura, in conjunction with local app development company IKAYZO, the app is a fun way to brush up on the finer points of pidgin. And, if it leaves you saying "hana hou," there’s a second and third volume in the works. Buy it for $0.99 at the app store here.
Get CardedYou were sold on the Malama Card from Kamehameha Schools when you found out it can save you cash on awesome merchants like Acid Dolls and Hank’s Haute Dogs. But now an app lets you carry a "virtual card" and look for spots to shop, all on your phone. The free program shows you all the deals nearby, or you can search through the discount card’s 100+ participants by category. Plus, you can tweet out or post to Facebook deals you find, and you can even email them to a friend. The Malama Card app is available free here.
Zero to Guitar Hero Coming soon this spring, an app guaranteed to string you along. Hawai‘i-based Miso Media’s new Miso Music iPad app is music to any guitar god wannabe’s ears. The app teaches guitar, or ukulele, through tablature, but unlike other programs, their unique software listens as you play. If you get the chord wrong it pauses so you can try it again. If you get it right, the tablature scrolls on to the next chord. It's already won the coveted People’s Choice Award at a recent conference of new tech start ups in San Francisco, now it's just waiting for Apple's approval. The app should be available in the next month or two. It will be free for an introductory period, with extra songs and features available at additional cost. Read more about it here.
