In today's age of immediate information, you don't need to be a movie buff to quickly answer film trivia. The key is just knowing where to find your answers. Anyone who's ever turned on a computer knows there's one prime source for movie information and that's the Internet Movie Data Base (IMDB).
Download the IMDB App from the Apple App Store
One of the pioneers of the early Web, IMDB was bought by Amazon in 1998. If you've ever surfed imdb.com on a mobile device you've probably felt like you had been teleported back a decade -- it's one clunky mobile user experience. Up until just a few months ago, Canadian film fans could only access IMDB on a mobile device by going to its website. But now that the iPhone/iPod Touch app has launched here in Canada, getting your film fix is easy, fast and enjoyable. To a point.
The app connects you to more than 1.5 million movie titles from around the world and more than 3 million profiles of actors, directors and other film crew. You can explore the top-rated (or lowest-rated) movies of all time, scan picture galleries of your favourite celebs and even connect and watch movie trailers. The app also has a link to amazon.ca which allows you to purchase movies and TV box-sets from the Canadian Amazon store.
One of IMDB's best attributes is it lists movie showtimes, TV listings and recaps of TV shows from the previous night except none of those work here in Canada. Until IMDB updates this feature you can easily find local movie listings using an app such as Showtimes.
For entertainment aficionados, IMDB also provides everything you'd want in a time-wasting application, while paying you back in spades with tons of ammo for your next Trivial Pursuit challenge. Whether you're a media junkie or not, the appeal of having decades worth of filmography at your fingertips is far too powerful to ignore and for the $0 price tag and makes the IMDB app a must-have iPhone companion.
Wine Apps Head To Head
Wine lovers know there's nothing like the right pairing to compliment a good meal, but not everyone knows whether the Chianti or the Merlot goes best with what's for dinner. That's where mobile devices come to the rescue. With quick access to a large resource of wine recommendations in seconds, even a vino novice can uncork the right vintage. Here are two mobile apps that promise to help you with picking a bottle for dinner, gift or special occasion.
Hello Vino is a free wine pairing and suggestion guide
Hello Vino uses a simple question-and-answer process to narrow down a list of recommended wines by figuring out who or what you're buying for. After you've identified the occasion, menu or your region of preference, the engine suggests three or four vintages, plus an option to see more recommendations.
The app also has a great search feature composed of several drop-down menus that let you customize things like type or wine, price and region. And Hello Vino understands a wine lover's urge to share with friends. The app has a social networking feature that lets you post your favourite wines to your Facebook and Twitter accounts.
However, Hello Vino has one major drawback: It's never heard of Canada. If you're looking for a Canadian wine or BC's best pinot noir to pair with your sockeye salmon, you'll come up corked.
Comprehensive wine guide for iPhone, iPod Touch, BlackBerry, Droid, Nexus, Nokia, Palm Pre and other smartphones
NatDecants recommends pairings around the wine you already have on hand or the dish you're already serving.
The app lists a huge variety of dishes, flavours and spices in each food category and when you've found the perfect match, you can record the info in a virtual wine cellar. However, to gain access to your virtual cellar, wish list and reviews, you are required to sign up for a free membership at nataliemaclean.com. The membership opens access to thousands of free reviews dating back to 2001. However, free reviews are all a year or more old. If you upgrade your subscription for a $24.99 annual fee you can access premium reviews, which are of wines currently in store.
Unlike Hello Vino, Canadian wines are not just included, they're promoted (Natalie MacLean, the sommelier behind the app, is a Cape Bretoner who lives in Ottawa). NatDescants also has a great feature in its Wineries search, which helps you find Canadian vineyards across the country.
And while I really liked Hello Vino's serendipitous nature in the way it lets you discover new wines and brands based upon occasions, NatDecant's list of features and options -- backed by a professional (and Canadian) wine expert -- makes it the clear winner. It's a great app and a must for anyone into wine.
Follow Brodie Beta on Twitter @iphonegirl