Popcorn: SG Movie Showtimes, free from Android Market
Previously exclusive to the iPhone, Popcorn is a nifty app that lets you search, browse and book movie tickets from local cinema chains including Cathay, Golden Village, Filmgarde, Shaw Cinemas and WE Cinemas by Eng Wah. At the same time, you can also check out movie synopses, cast information, movie ratings and YouTube trailers.
The app is easy to use: choose a date, movie and cinema, and you will be directed to the cinema operator’s website to book your tickets. Some bugs have to be ironed out: the app displayed a maintenance notice on Golden Village’s ticketing site for The Three Musketeers, though the same booking could be made on a computer. To entice users to download the app, Popcorn has also teamed up with Garrett’s Popcorn to offer attractive popcorn deals.
Iris, free from Android Market
A team of developers has conceived this app to bring Apple’s Siri voice search technology to Android devices. In a brilliant twist, Iris, or Siri spelled backwards, was put together in just eight hours. The clone has been updated several times since it was unveiled last month.
To use the app, tap on the Iris button to ask a question and the answer will be read out in a computer-generated voice within seconds. In our tests, the app delivered on questions like “why is the sky blue”, with the right answer retrieved from a Wikipedia article. Iris has a feisty personality, too. If you ask her to shut up, she will reply with “yeah, well don’t expect me to buy stuff for you in future if that’s your attitude”. Iris works most of the time, but in some cases, the app failed to call a few contacts despite recognising their names.
Skoob, free from Android Market
SingTel is banking on the first-mover advantage to sell e-books in Singapore with Skoob, an e-book service developed on Mobcast, an online retail platform for digital books. Up till now, there was no direct way of purchasing e-books in Singapore, so SingTel’s entrance into the market will give the telco an early lead in the fledgling local e-book market.
The app offers the same experience as the Skoob website and lets you browse and purchase e-books after logging into your account. The store stocks great local content, including the Giants of Asia series by publisher Marshall Cavendish. To entice users to sign up for the service, SingTel is also offering one e-book that you can download for free, though there are only five titles to choose from. By and large, the app works as promised, though I had difficulty signing in several times despite entering the correct credentials.
