Merry Christmas and congratulations on your new iPhone 
To get you started as quickly as possible, the Taptu team has collected our Christmas Top 10 free apps here, all of which can be found via the Apple App Store.
Firstly, did you know?
Some trivia to delight your family and friends around the Christmas dinner table…
Trivia 1: Did you know that the first iPhone, launched January 2007, was so revolutionary that it literally redefined what is meant by the term smartphone.
Trivia 2: Did you know the iPhone 4′s front and back is made of aluminosilicate glass, where aluminosilicate means aluminium + silicon + oxygen. We did warn you this was trivia.
Trivia 3: Did you know that Apple announced a white version of the iPhone 4 at its launch, but manufacturing difficulties mean it’s not likely to hit the shops before Spring.
Trivia 4: Did you know the iPhone’s moisture sensors are located in the headphone jack and near the dock connector. Phone manufacturers refer to these when considering replacements under warranty (where water logging isn’t covered), but because the iPhone’s sensors are open to the elements they could be triggered even if you didn’t drop the phone in the bath.
But onto the apps…
These apps will delight anywhere in the world. We’ve deliberately ignored apps that have a predominant focus on one geographic market.
1. Tap Tap Revenge 4: OK, an obvious one to start with… it is the number one game series for the iPhone after all, and version 4 is out just in time for Christmas. What can we say?.. It’s fun!
2. Talking Tom Cat: seriously, just try it.
3. Foursquare: at your mother’s for Christmas? Then make sure to be the Foursquare mayor there. This fast growing location based social network might even earn you discounts at your local Starbucks and Domino Pizza. I even know a father and son who vie to be mayor of their dog’s basket!
4. Groupon: possibly the most exciting commerce related app at the moment, Groupon aims to use collective buying power so that organizations can find new customers and so that customers get a better deal. Everyone’s a winner, including Groupon of course. Now in 150 US cities and 100 European cities.
5. Siri Assistant: we’re still playing with this, but we’re already sufficiently intrigued to put it in our top 10. Simply put, Siri is your virtual personal assistant. Need a taxi? Table for two? Want to know what’s on at the O2 or Madison Square Garden? Just ask it by typing or talking.
6. Instagram: This newly launched photo sharing app has hit over a million users already. Its appeal is obvious when you load up the app–interesting photos from around the world as well as the ability to share yours all in an easy-to-scroll through stream.
7. World Lens: OK, this is like magic. See a sign in a language you don’t speak? Photograph it with World Lens and see the app display the sign on your iPhone, translated! Quite incredible.
8. Skype: Why not make cheaper phone calls from your iPhone, avoiding those nasty roaming charge surprises. You can also allow people to call you wherever you happen to be for the price of a local call.
9. Layar: Using your iPhone’s camera, compass, GPS capability and accelerometer, Layar displays what your camera sees on the iPhone’s screen, overlaying information layers relevant to your needs. Need an ATM… apparently there’s one 20 yards round the corner, second turn on your left.
10. My Taptu: We couldn’t bring you a top 10 app list without our own app. Fortunately, we feel justified in light of the great ratings we’re getting (regularly attracting 5 stars out of 5). We think of it as our one-stop-app for all the news and views shared by our social networks and curated by our sterling team into ‘streams’ of interest. Just because My Taptu is free doesn’t mean it’s not valuable!
We’d love you to share this list with your friends, with other iPhone owners.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, KP and the Taptu team.
