Appiphilia: Earth Day ideas for iPhones

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Dancers perform in front of art installations using recycled products during an Earth Day celebration in Manila. Credit: Francis Malasig / EPA

Happy Earth Day, Appiphiliacs.

Earth Day was born in the era of Pintos, IBMs and recession. Today, 39 years later, we have Priuses, iPods and recession.

Though some things have changed -- and others have just been recycled -- the day gives us a chance to celebrate, create and accelerate environmental progress in protecting our planet, according to EarthDay.gov.

We focused earlier on ‘green’-specific apps here and here, so let’s check out a few apps to help us integrate enviro-friendlier habits.

Seafood Guide (Free)

What it is: A pocket version of Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch program, which is designed to help users make ocean-friendly seafood choices. (The iPhone-less can check out a mobile version here.)

What sizzles: It breaks down seafood options from abalone to yellowtail by ‘best choice,’ ‘good alternative’ and ‘avoid’ and is separated into regions. I really dig that it includes suggestions in consumer notes and health alerts and that the summary explains each animal’s circumstances. For sushi fans, there’s a guide that lists fish by their Japanese and common market names.

What fizzles: It would have been nice to be able to zoom the text since there’s a lot of good info to read.

Bottom line: Your mama was right. There are many fish in the sea. This app can help you reel in better choices. (Too bad it doesn’t work on mates.)

beamME Pro vCard exchange ($4.99)

What it is: An electronic replacement for business cards. You set up your own card and text it over, mimicking the infrared beaming from the days of Palm. You also can e-mail it from the phone.

What sizzles: We really missed the ease of beaming. (Remember when groups of people would gather in hallways, giddy from beaming business contacts and apps among them?) Anything that saves our fingers from tedious tapping has to be a good thing.

Plus with companies cutting back on just about everything, you can still have a business card even if those have been eliminated from the budget. The company says beamME users have saved more than 100,000 pieces of paper from being wasted and have planted thousands of trees through the Arbor Day Foundation. (For Earth Day, they say they will plant a tree for every sale.)

What fizzles: For iPhone users on the receiving end, it does take a few more steps than reaching in a case and handing it over -- the upside is that you don’t have to transcribe it yourself. That’s because iPhones cannot receive vCard via SMS. So you text it; a link shows up. The receiver goes to the link and selects ‘download vCard.’ Next, you send it to yourself via e-mail. And then you can save it to your address book. How much energy was expended there?

Bottom line: It’s a quick way to better ensure your card doesn’t get lost.

3rdWhale Mobile (Free)

What it is: Another guide to the greener side of life. It can help you find the nearest vegetarian restaurant, fair-trade store or bike shop. 3rdWhale tells you what’s nearby based on criteria including whether the company is using natural or organic materials, whether the company follows energy-efficiency measures, and whether fair labor practices are employed. They say the app features info for more than 25,000 ‘green’ businesses in North America.

What sizzles: Making better choices isn’t always easy -- and how. This app gives a glimpse at how to be more green on the go. You can scroll through for what you’re looking for in a mix-and-match approach. Say, printing services within walking distance. Using your phone’s inner location services (GPS or triangulation), it tells you what’s nearby, gives you a description, rating and can open Google Maps for directions.

In terms of interactivity, users who consider themselves ‘green gurus’ or ‘ecoistas’ can review the listings and rate them with one, two or three whales.

What fizzles: The app is in beta. For that printing service within walking distance, it offered me something 80 miles away. In fairness, most of the other options were appropriate distances for walking, biking and driving.

Some of the information is limited -- and dependent on the store or restaurant’s description of itself. So far, there weren’t a lot of reviews in my test areas. They say they have more than 100 cities in the U.S. and Canada, with a goal of 1,000 cities across the world. Two things I couldn’t figure out: I didn’t see where other people’s ratings and reviews were to appear and the Facebook connection. It lets you use your Facebook account if you want, but why wasn’t quite apparent yet.

Bottom line: It seems to be on the right path.

A few other enviro-focused apps that you might want to check out:

• shopgreen (Free)
• Mission Zero (Free)
• The Green Lemur (Free)
• Green Energy Challenge (Free)
• Global Warming Personal Calculator (99 cents)

Do you have any green tips or app ideas for other iPhone and iPod users? Share them in the comments section below.

-- Michelle Maltais

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