Ten years ago, there were probably five things that you could find in my pockets at any given time. Things I never was found without: car keys, a lighter, a cell phone, a sharpie, and my wallet. Today however, there is only one thing I never leave home without… my iPhone.

Besides the obvious reasons that everyone today carries some sort of smartphone, email, internet access, and well… it’s a phone… the iPhone and its Android cousins have provided a new treatment for the worlds seemingly most incurable illness… boredom.

Gone are the days of Brickbreaker and midi ringtones that are barely recognizable and verge on infuriating. In today’s fast-moving society, smartphones have created a new era for connectivity, networking, pocket gaming, and so much more. With the list of smartphone applications reaching into the hundreds of thousands, I thought it would be nice to put together a list of some of my favorite and most used applications for your reading pleasure.

We’ll start off easy with the easiest and yet sometimes, most difficult to pick through category:

Doodle God

I found Doodle God in the app store under the Top Paid section of all games. The game is .99 cents and worth every penny. You play the role of “god” and progress through the three episodes (all three come with the app for no extra charge) by combining elements to create new elements. The game is simple to play, easy to learn, and HOURS of fun. One thing I have realized about apps, specifically games, is that if you can only play them once and for not very long, they aren’t worth money. The catch to this game is that while you start with only Earth, Water, Air, and Fire, you progress all the way up to computers, lasers, nuclear bombs, and even the Internet. There are 196 mutations spread across 21 groups that, at times can be incredibly challenging to figure out. This game has a browser version with far less mutations over on Kongregate, but unfortunately no Android version as of yet.

Stick Golf

Stick Golf is an app that my good friend Nathan Deno kept talking about and so I decided to finally give it a shot. This game is more addicting than Angry Birds (another fantastic game that nearly everyone with a smartphone has played already), and while the graphics might not be as hot, the game is just as long and enjoyable. Right now the game comes with twelve different courses that increase in difficulty as you unlock them. Each course has 9 holes, so you are sure to have plenty to do for a while. The OpenFeint capabilities make the game that much more addicting as you compete to beat your friends scores on each course and obtain those cherished gold medals. This game is definitely worth the .99 cents it costs to iPhone users through the App Store. The developers at Noodle Cake even say they have another update coming soon with more courses, which is always a good thing to know when you are about to actually purchase an app. Sadly this game still does not have an Android version yet either, though it does have an HD version for the iPad that costs a whopping 2.99.

Netflix

This app needs no explanation. It only released recently for iPhone but Android versions are surely just around the corner. Finally, if you have a Netflix account already, you can stream anything Netflix offers via their website or other platform. The app is free, and thus far works flawlessly. You can also update your que from within the app, but honestly, who cares about that… STREAMING MOVIES AND TELEVISION SHOWS!

With the incredible camera’s that most of these smartphones are coming with these days, it doesn’t take much to make a cellphone photo look like a professional shot.

Camera Bag

This app is near and dear to my heart. It is one of the first applications I ever purchased for my iPhone back when they magical device came out, and I use it still on a daily basis. This app now has 12 different lenses that will church up even the most droll photos. It is the only photo app you will ever NEED to purchase for your iPhone or iPad. If you want to see some cool photos taken with the app check out the Nevercenter Gallery!

Juxtaposer

Juxtaposer is another app that I have used for a long time but never really hear anyone else talking about. I’m not sure if it’s the 2.99 price point that scares users away, or the terrifying app logo. Regardless, this app is priceless. For those that might not have the Photoshop skills that they always wanted, this app takes all the difficulty out of it. It’s an incredibly simple program to superimpose yourself into any scene your little heart could desire. Lay down a base image, then toss on the top layer image of your choosing. Zoom in to make sure you get all those background pixels deleted with the swipe of a finger. Another amazing app worth every penny. Combine these two fantastic photo-apps for some fantastic results!

There are thousands more, for sure, but these should be enough to last you until next time. New apps are released every day in more categories than you can imagine which means I will keep downloading and writing until I am blue in the face. Someday, maybe I will get my hands on an Android so I can talk a little bit more about some of the apps available only for it. Enjoy!