Handy Unit Conversion Apps for iPhone
Converting Made Easy
Chances are, if you have an iPhone, you’ve wanted to know what 27 Degrees Celsius would be in Fahrenheit (around 80 Degrees, for the record), or what your friends in Europe mean exactly by “I was going 100 Km/Hr”. If these are questions you’ve had before, the iPhone is right there for you with its handy conversion apps.
Several of these apps exist, but which is right for you? Should you spend money? We’ve got all that covered for you in the list below. Ready for the top 3 apps?
Convert
Price: $0.99
Convert is the kind of app that others should aim for and not because it’s cheap and ruthlessly effective. The reason that the app is enviable is because of its UI - it’s just a beautiful design aesthetic and awesome effects. As the units switch on the left side of the screen, a quasi-Windows-7 like transparent panel comes over the unit you currently have your finger on.
Taking aside the fact that the design is so amazing, the app is also brutally efficient at determining the conversions between units. The number of decimal places ensures a good conversion as well. As far as unit converter apps go, this is the cream of the crop.
Convertbot
Price: $1.99
Convertbot has all the bells and whistles that Convert has, including a beautiful lock-style UI and great design. As far as compared to Convert, it even has some advanced settings that are great for eliminating those units that aren’t necessary. The scrolling between units works incredibly well and the conversions are also incredibly accurate.
There are only two minor pitfalls that prevent Convertbot from winning top prize. First, for a conversion app, it costs double what Convert does for the same functionality. So from a purely value-driven standpoint, Convertbot isn’t worth it. The other problem is that the app is a bit clunky in its execution - the conversion calculator isn’t on-screen seconds after opening the app, rather, first the unit is selected, then the lock has to be turned to the unit required. Personally, Convert is a far easier app to use.
Convert Units for Free
Price: Free!
While the top two apps are priced, how can you really compare to a totally free app? The answer lies in the User Interface. While Convert Units for Free gets the same job done as both the other apps (with a few less units), you take a hit on the “prettiness” of the product.
I’m not going to sugarcoat this any longer - the interface is pretty ugly and “steals” the font-type from the Convert app in an effort to try to make it less ugly. But then again, if the app is free, can you really complain? After all, if this is an app you’re going to be using at least more than once, it is definitely worth spending the $0.99 and getting Convert over this app.
