Out of the many, many apps on my iPhone, these are the ones on my home screen and the ones I use the most. The ones I use when I need to know something right now, or when I want to put my own touch on the normal.

1. Shazam

(Price: FREE)

Picture this: You’re in the car jamming to a song on the radio. It ends. And you’re hoping the DJ mentions the song title or artist... but he doesn’t! And now you’re feeling disappointed and hard-done-by because you really liked the song and wanted to get it for your own listening pleasure. This little app will chase these feelings away! It allows you to tap into the world’s music database and get the details of that jammin’ song. All you do is open the app, tap the “Shazam” logo and the app will begin listening to the song. It only takes a few seconds to search the database and the details pop up on your screen. These details include artist, song title, as well as album information. This is one handy little app!

2. Cross Process

(Price: $0.99)

This app is another favourite of mine. You can turn any photo into a photo with flattering softness – no harsh lines, no harsh light. Upon opening the app, there are two choices – either you take a photo directly using the app’s camera, or you select a photo out of your library. The app opens up on the former option with the normal “take shot” button found in the camera app. If you’d rather select a photo from your library, press the “cancel” button to the left of the “take shot” button. Then select the button that looks like a square in front of a square – this will take you to your library. Simply select the photo you want to use and it will be developed and transformed into a softer, more flattering photo.

BEFORE

AFTER

3. Epicurious

(Price: FREE)

Ever been in the mood to bake or cook but not had a recipe at your fingertips? Well with this app the world of cooking and baking is available at the tap of an app! It has a wide array of recipes to search through (from vegetarian menus to weeknight dinners to kid-friendly meals). What’s more is you can take a look through your fridge and then enter key words into the search functionality and the app will search its database for a few recipes that include your ingredients. If you’re organised and have selected and saved interesting recipes, the app will even put together a shopping list for you. Time to save a tree and get rid of the traditional pen-and-paper shopping list!

4. 8mm Vintage Camera

(Price: $1.99)

With the iPhone now able to take video footage, this app is a necessity for those that like to play with settings. It allows you to take video footage using different vintage filters – 60’s, Sienna, 1920’s, etc. These effects are displayed in real time as you record and you can swap and change between them as your trigger finger feels the need. You can also alter the lens style, use a flash, use the iPhone 4’s front camera and even trigger some frame jitter into some scenes to add to the feel of an old movie.

5. Bump

(Price: FREE)

This is a very simple app but one that truly saves time. It’s all about sharing information – photos, contacts, etc. The fun part about sharing this information is that you literally ‘bump’ two iPhones together to share the content. If you’re the one sending the information, all you need to do is open up the app, select the item you want to share, and then bump phones to share. If you’re on the receiving end, all you need to do is open the app, bump phones and wait for the content to be shared. Any photo received will be stored in your photo library, and any contact shared will be stored in your address book.