Push notifications ring, are you listening? In the store, calls you’re missing. Yes, Christmas time is here in full force and with it comes a barrage of apps that are as focused on Santa as your typical toddler might be. If you want to keep the Christmas spirit alive on your iPhone, here are five apps that should do the trick.
Singing Santa (Free)
Why sing holiday classics all by yourself when you can get Santa to help you out? Singing Santa gives you the opportunity to hear Mr. Kringle belt out timeless classics like “Jingle Bells” and “Deck the Halls” for free. Additional songs like “Joy to the World” and “12 Days of Christmas” can be purchased at an additional cost. And don’t forget to download “Jingle Bellz (Hip Hop)” to add a little extra flavor to your usual Christmas fare.
Talking Santa for iPhone ($0.99)
If you want to hang with an interactive Santa but want a lot less singing, Talking Santa for iPhone is the way to go. Not only will he repeat what you say, but you can poke and tickle Santa and watch him react, and even run him over with a snowball. If you’re in a gentler mood, you can also give Santa some milk and cookies. If that’s not enough there are additional in-app purchases that ad new characters to poke and talk to as well.
Santa Tracker 2011 ($0.99)
Back when I was a kid, we tracked Santa the old-fashioned way. And by that, I mean we didn’t track him at all. But kids today have all the advantages and they can keep tabs on Santa (like a jealous boyfriend/girlfriend might) with Santa Tracker 2011. With this app you can read a blog updated by Santa that updates kids on his preparation and delivery progress, and parents can put their kids on Santa’s naughty or nice list, making this app a very effective tool to encourage good behavior for a month or so.
Santa’s Christmas Village ($0.99)
If you like checkers, Mahjong, Solitaire, Minesweeper and a host of other simple board games, but you thought they could use a little Christmas-infused sprucing up, Santa’s Christmas Village is the app for you. While the Christmas skins these games received are largely irrelevant, it’s still a good package for the price tag. It’s hard to beat 17 games and 25 Christmas songs for a dollar, so if you’re yearning for a little tic-tac-toe while you listen to “Deck the Halls,” Santa’s Christmas Village should satisfy completely.
Santa Express for Kids (Letters to Santa) iPhone Version (Free)
Santa Express takes the time-honored tradition of writing letters to St. Nick and throws it into the iPhone age with a focus on simplicity. Kids can craft their letters to Santa telling them all about what they want and then “send” the letter off to be read. If Santa has time, he can log onto a website, retrieve the letter and write a note back where it will wind up in an inbox within the Santa Express app. Having never actually received a letter from Santa myself, this makes me a little jealous, and I wholeheartedly support it.
