Are Eco Apps the way forward?
Eco apps for your iPhone, Blackberry phones and lifestyle are great ways to take advantage of the coolest and most recent technologies out in the marketplace.
However popular and fun iPhone apps like ‘Texas Hold’em and ifart are, they do little beyond providing a forum for you to look productive at work.
There are a wide variety in the types of eco phone apps that can create a positive difference to the environment.
Something as simple as an app that lets you channel surf on your smartphone before you turn on your TV, cable box/satellite box can make a positive difference.
A Direct TV app will let you help the environment by letting your pick what you are going to watch before you turn on the TV thus reducing your energy consumption and saving you money.
Luckily there is a new generation of phone applications that provide meaningful information that can make a positive social and environmental impact.
So you can look productive while actually being eco-productive.
Here are some eco apps that we are excited about, if you know of any eco apps you would like to share, please send them our way.
GoodGuide App
GoodGuide is one of the coolest eco apps in the market.
It is a phone application that reviews the environmental and social implications of various products.
While shopping this device allows you to type in a product you are about to buy and read a brief review on that product’s environmental and social impact. There are over 70,0000 products and ratings in their database.
The Good things
- Available free in an iPhone Application or Text Messaging Application
- The product reviews are rated out of 10 in three categories: 1) Health- The impact of a company’s operations on its workers and local communities, and the impact of using a product on your health. 2) Environmental- The life-cycle impact of a product, from manufacturing and transportation to use and final disposal. 3) Social- Compensation, labour and human rights practices, diversity policies and working conditions.
- If you create a profile with GoodGuide you can actually create lists and store your preferences.
The Bad:
- GoodGuide currently only provides information on personal care and household chemical products, but it is planning to expand to include food, toys, electronics and more.
- There are four areas to the app: Featured, Find, Lists, and Profile. The search part of ‘Find’ can be a bit annoying as you have to search for a specific product or a very broad category.
The Buying:
- Free on Apple App Store
- For Free Text Messaging Application: send a text message ‘gguide’ with the type of product you are searching for to 41411. Then narrow your search through the selections they provide, finding the product of interest.
ShopGreen App
This app calculates logs and saves ‘green’ actions by the user.
The more green you do, the more you are rewarded.
Shopgreen tracks the user’s progress and tallies them in the Eco-Bank which may lead to free stuff such as coupons and specials.
It also provides daily tips, green suggestions and recipes.
The Good:
- Comes equipped with CO2 calculators
- Posts maps and information about nearby recycling centres.
- CO2 offset link provided
The Buying
- Free on Apple App Store
The GreenMeter App
The GreenMeter is powered to keep track of your car’s fuel efficiency.
By calculating both basic and advanced variables – among them weather conditions, vehicle weight, rolling resistance and fuel cost – the app can let you know what your vehicle is really costing you…And the environment.
Just place the greenMeter on your dashboard or in your console and it will calculate and display easy to read graphs.
The Good:
- It computes data in US or metric measurements
- greenMeter helps evaluate your driving style to increase efficiency, reduce fuel consumption and cost and lower your environmental impact.
The Bad / The Buying
- It costs $5.99 which is expensive relative to the other eco-apps
Ecoble App
Another Apple App that sends updates and information on sustainability, green technology, news and innovation in the form of a blog to a user’s iPhone.
The Good:
- Has some great information on green & organic lifestyle, world green news, sustainability and green technology.
- If you don’t have an iPhone you can check out all the same information on their website:www.ecoble.com
The Buying
- Free to your iphone , blackberry or email via their website www.ecoble.com
MeterRead App
This app eliminates any form of confusion when attempting to decipher your home electricity meter.
Just match your home electric meter dials to the reading on the app’s Graphic Pointers to get an accurate reading.
After each reading, the app gives you feedback on your energy use that can in turn, helps you figure out how to reduce your monthly energy consumption.
The Good
- MeterRead calculates total kilowatts per hour between each reading and the average watt load.
- It can also forecast your 30 day kilowatts per hour usage stats.
- This app is especially great if you just moved into a new home and you’re not sure what the fist month’s electric bill is going to cost you.
- People who monitor their home energy use can save 10-20% on their electric bill and reduce their carbon footprint.
The Buying
- Costs $.99 via Apple App Store
Easy Eco Blog App
This app publishes easy to follow daily tips to make you more green or eco-friendly.
The Good
- Often the eco tips also help you save a little green too.
- If you don’t have an iPhone you can check out their daily tips and articles on their website: www.easyecoblog.com
The Buying
- Free to your iphone, blackberry, or email via their website www.easyecoblog.com
Eco Apps Coming Soon
Ticketek Mobile Ticketing by Orugga: An electronic ticketing eco app that aims to reduce paper consumption at concerts and events by incorporating a bar code stored on the user’s phone to secure entrance admission.
Green Phone by MobiMonster This application aims to increase battery life by monitoring the backlight, WLAN, Bluetooth and charger and will alert the user when a feature is not in use.
