The 2010 Winter Games are finally here. If you’re making your way to Vancouver this month, you should tap into these iPhone apps right away.
iPhone apps for the Vancouver sports fan
I’ve already covered the essential iPhone apps for the upcoming Winter games, though I’d be remiss not to mention to recently released2010 iTracker – Vancouver Winter Medals + FIFA and ATP Rankings.
As its lengthy title suggests, the 99-cent iPhone app covers a mixed bag of sports – the 2010 games, FIFA news and rankings, as well as tennis’ ATP rankings. I’m not sure why the developer chose those three sports to lump together, but if you happen to be a huge fan of tennis, soccer and winter sports then, wow, did you ever luck out.
I would imagine most Vancouver-area sports fans will pass the time until the Olympics by following the city’s only major professional sports franchise, the Vancouver Canucks. Vancouver Canucks News and Rumors ($1.99) can help you with this, providing news, schedule and standings for the team as they fight for a Western Conference playoff berth.
Of course if you don’t want to shell out the $1.99 and you don’t mind a league-wide iPhone app, CBC Hockey has all that info and more for a much better price – free. The official iPhone app for “Hockey Night in Canada” has live box scores from every NHL game and stats for all the league’s teams and players.
For you masochistic sports fans, Grizzlies Game Time will give you live scoring, push notifications and all kinds of other features related to the suddenly resurgent NBA that formerly called Vancouver home. Unfortunately, the $3.99 iPhone app won’t tell you how the Grizzlies only managed to avoid finishing in last place once during their six seasons in the city.
iPhone apps to help you get around town
I’m the furthest thing from a Vancouver traffic expert, but I’m guessing that hosting the world’s most storied sporting event may make it more difficult to zoom around town.
Those looking to use public transportation should check out UniBus, a multi-city bus schedule iPhone app that covers Vancouver’s Translink service. The $2.99 app makes the most sense for frequent travelers, as despite not supporting a few major ones, it does have information for 30-plus North American cities.
Route 411 ($1.99) is a similar app, though instead of attempting to cover all of North America, it focuses on public transit information in Vancouver, Edmonton and Toronto. The good news is that you don’t need the other city schedules, and this iPhone app is a $1 cheaper than UniBus for the same information.
If you plan on driving in the city during the 2010 games, MultiCamPlus Vancouver may be of some use. The iPhone app gives you access to 32 traffic cameras across the city, hopefully helping you avoid trouble areas. The $1.99 app is available for 16 cities around the world, with its main focus on North American cities.
iPhone apps for when you’re out on the town
Though I don’t advocate it, occasionally even the most avid sports fan needs to take a break from sports.
Free WiFi Vancouver can help you find cafes and restaurants in the area that offer free Internet access if you’re looking to get some work done or you want to use one of those pesky apps that only works with a Wi-Fi connection. The iPhone app is free, and there is a worldwide version of the app for $1.99.
Don’t like the weather in Vancouver? They say if you just wait 15 minutes, it will change (OK, they don’t actually say that).
Atmosphérique is a free iPhone app that will answer any questions you have about Canadian weather, whether you’re in British Columbia or Nova Scotia. It has much more information than the default weather app, such as things like sunrise/sunset times, wind information and humidity.
If you get the shopping bug while in Vancouver, few iPhone apps will be of more use to you than ChicWalks Vancouver Shopping. The 99-cent app uses the iPhone’s GPS to guide you to all kind of shops and restaurants in the area, conveniently organized by street and area.
For more free Vancouver app selections, check out the Curated List compiled by Regis Chapman)
