Smartphones and tablets are the ‘it’ devices of today. They were designed from the ground up with ease of use in mind—hand someone a touch screen and it doesn’t take more than a few minutes for him or her to figure out the basics – but the sheer volume of applications (apps) to sift through can be daunting for the newcomer. Here, we would like to elucidate a few that could turn your new device (or future device) into the perfect, tireless assistant for living, working or traveling in Mexico.
There are many reasons a foreigner might not have a data plan (internet through a cell phone company), so we will be sure to let you know which apps require a connection and which can be used without. Even without a data plan, internet-connected apps can be useful as long as you are near regular wireless access—at home, at a cafe, etc. All apps listed are for Apple devices (iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad). Alternatives are given for Google’s Android platform as well, although (DISCLAIMER) they have not been tested. All prices are in U.S. dollars from the U.S. iTunes store (which you can access from Mexico) or the Google Play Store (for Android).
There are two ways to get apps onto your Apple device (iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad).
Method 1: Open iTunes on your computer and click “iTunes Store” on the left column. From there, use the search box in the top right corner or just click “App Store” at the top of the page and start browsing. When you find an app you want to get, just click the price (even if it is free) and confirm the purchase on your credit card. The app will automatically download, and the next time you connect your device to your computer and “Sync,” the app will transfer to the device.
Method 2: Make sure your device (iPhone, etc.) is connected to the internet (you can connect to any regular Wi-Fi network for free). Open the app called “App Store.” From there just browse or search for apps and download them directly to the device.
Either way, you’ll have to have an Apple ID—usually an email address and password that you used when you first set up your device (don’t worry, Apple walks you through it). When you purchase or download an app with your Apple ID account, Apple will associate it with your account forever, even if you delete it from your device or buy a new device.
If you have an Android device, open the app called “Google Play Store.” After getting the store set up on your device and linked to your Google account, you should be able to head to play.google.com to access the store on your computer as well. Sign in with your Google account, browse for, purchase and download the apps you want.
Like Apple, Google associates all of your purchases with your Google account, so you don’t have to worry about ever paying for something twice.
The pick of the best apps
Word Lens
Word Lens would have qualified as Star Trek technology a decade ago. Hold your device’s camera up to a sign and watch as the app translates the words right in front of you. It’s limited to large, clear text and it could be more stable—words tend to flutter into and out of translation, but it’s an impressive first step, and amazingly useful for trying to read important notices when traveling. It’s a bit expensive, as you have to separately purchase the English to Spanish and Spanish to English packs at ten dollars each. Really, you could always just look the words up in a dictionary instead, but you can download the app for free and test it with disappearing or reverse words, so why not try it?
Android: No. Price: Basic app free, one-way language packs 9.99 each. Connection required: No
Convert ~ the unit calculator
Astonishingly, Apple neglected to provide a conversion tool on their cutting edge devices—something my old Nokia did in 2001. A quick search of iTunes reveals a plethora of apps jumping to fill this void. The one called, simply “Convert ~ the unit calculator” has a great interface and handles fifteen categories of unit conversion from temperature to weight to currency. It can be a real boon if you aren’t fluent in the metric system. It also has a built-in calculator so you don’t have to flip back and forth between apps to do simple equations. How many light-years are in a parsec? 3.2638.
Android: Try ConvertPad. It’s popular, powerful and free. Price: 2.99. Connection required: To update currency exchange rates.
Navigon Mexico
Google maps will not work without a constant internet connection. Navigon Mexico provides an alternative that stores a map of the entire country right in your hand. It is expensive at 50 dollars, but it covers most cities, including smaller places such as Chapala and Sayulita, and the roads between them. Navigon will also route you to a destination and speak directions. You must have a device with a GPS unit (iPhone, iPad 3G/4G).
Android: No, but Navigon USA & Canada claims to include Mexico also (39.95). Price: 49.99. Connection Required: Only the first time you run the app.
Lonely planet travel guide
At 6.99 each, the Lonely Planet City Guides offer all of the helpful information of the print versions with an attractive, easy-to-use interface. The only one in Mexico so far is Mexico City, but it’s a great resource to use within the federal capital. Offline maps mean you don’t have to be connected to the internet to find landmarks, and if you have a device with a GPS, it will even place you on the map. The Android platform doesn’t have travel guide apps, but they do carry the Lonely Planet Mexico book in electronic format for just 12.96.
Android: No, but Lonely Planet Mexico e-book available for 12.96. Price: 6.99 Connection required: No
English-Spanish Unabridged Dictionary by Word Magic
Never forget your dictionary again. A good Spanish-English dictionary is essential for anyone from beginner to fluent speaker. Relying on web sites means having an internet connection. Take it all with you instead. Word Magic’s Unabridged English-Spanish dictionary claims to be the world’s largest at 1.7 million translations. It has almost never let me down—and I have tested it with a lot of obscure terms. It also includes a verb conjugator and thousands of phrases and idioms. The only drawback is that the database of words is so large, there is a noticeable delay when searching (4-5 seconds on iPhone 4).
Android: No. Oxford Spanish-English Dictionary available for 24.99. Price: 19.99. Connection Required: Only for pictures, voice and spell-check.
Free City Maps and Walks
For the adventurous, walking a new city is the only way to get around. This app provides high quality maps and recommended walking tours complete with sights along the way, distance and time to completion for hundreds of cities around the world (including several in Mexico). Some even have audio narration. All maps and points of interest are free, but if you want to use GPS functionality to guide you, it will cost 4.99 per city.
Android: No. Price: Free. GPS functionality 4.99 per city. Connection required: Only to download new maps
OpenTable
OpenTable lets you search area restaurants for available dinner reservations and make them right over the internet. Though it doesn’t officially list Guadalajara as a supported urban center, it works with a handful of restaurants around Providencia and the Zona Rosa.
Android: Yes. Price: Free. Connection required: Yes.
Yahoo! Sportacular
Not a Mexico app per se, but face it, if you cheer for a small market team, it can be a chore to find the game sometimes. Keep up using Yahoo! Sportacular. Choose your sport and league, view the schedule, and follow the play-by-play score of any game.
Android: Yes. Price: Free. Connection required: Yes.
Skype
You’re may already be using Skype to talk with your loved ones back home anyway, so why not get the mobile version. It’s free, and that way you don’t have to be attached to your computer to chat.
Android: Yes. Price: Free. Connection required: Yes.
A really useful app: Google Voice + Talkatone for free calling
Using a combination of Google Voice, apps and a bit of foresight, you can set yourself up to make free calls anywhere in the United States or Canada—from Mexico. U.S.-based numbers will also be able to receive free calls. Unfortunately, the beginning of the process requires you to be in the United States or Canada. You can either take care of that part (steps 1 to 3, sidebar) the next time you are back north, or have someone you trust do it for you. This will work for iOS (Apple) devices and Android (2.2 and above). Both apps are free and you will need an internet connection to make telephone calls.
Setting it up
Google Voice was designed as a service to give you one phone number that forwards incoming calls to all of your real life numbers (your home, office and cell phone for example). So, you need to have a real U.S. or Canadian phone number in order to set up the service. Furthermore, you can’t even initiate step 2 from Mexico.
Get a Google account. If you don’t already have a Gmail or another Google account, create one at www.gmail.com.
From a computer in the United States or Canada: go to voice.google.com and sign in using your Google account.
From there, Google will walk you through the process of choosing a telephone number, a PIN (for accessing voicemail remotely), and forwarding the calls to your real phone (we will change this later). You will need to be near your U.S. or Canadian phone at this point because you will have to answer an automated call from Google.
Now, since you want to use this number over the internet, we’ll have to stop it from forwarding calls to your real phone. Head to voice.google.com and sign in. You should now see what looks like an email inbox. This is actually your voicemail inbox. Above and to the right, click on the circular gear. In the resulting dropdown menu, select “Settings.” On this “Phones” tab, you want to make sure “Forward calls to Google Chat” is selected, and then you can unselect your real telephone number if you wish. Now, everything is ready for your mobile device.
Make sure your mobile device is connected to the internet. In iTunes or the App Store, or the Android Marketplace on your Android device, find and download two free apps: Google Voice and Talkatone.
Open Talkatone. Choose to sign in with Google and use the Google email address and password that you used to set up Google voice.
Press “Keypad” at the bottom of the screen. Just dial the U.S. or Canadian number that you want to call as if you were using your regular cell phone. You can also use the address book to place calls.
Voila! Take your device down to Mexico and call as much as you want for free (until at least the end of 2012). Your number will show up to others as the Google Voice number you configured, and U.S. users can also receive calls at that number (Talkatone must be open in the background, otherwise just collect the voicemail messages later).