Convert

Developer: Inventive, Inc.
Category: Utilities
Version: 1.0.1
Release Date: August 13, 2009
Size: 0.3 MB
Price: $0.99
Rating 8/10

It's funny how iPhone development is pushing the limits of what a screen can do: from games to newspapers to music, it feels like many apps are utilizing every available pixel of real estate. But I find when it comes to utilities, simplicity and elegance are key. That's how Convert, by Inventive, Inc, came to live on my Utilities screen.

The idea behind Convert is not a new one. You set the unit you want to convert from, such as inches, newtons, dollars, pounds, and so on, and then select what unit you want converted, such as meters, kilograms, yen, and grams. But the execution is what separates Convert from other similar utilities.

Convert features three scroll wheels. The first is the kind of measurement you want to convert, such as Currency, Volume, Weight, Speed, Force, and Energy. The second wheel is the unit you want to convert from, the third what you want to convert to. The list of things you're able to convert seems nearly inexhaustible: points and picas, for people who still print, and kilobytes and gigabytes for those who have gone all-digital.

But the greatest feature is the inclusion of a calculator on the screen. Convert understands that you're usually not converting things in a vacuum. You're trying to make a cake, or calculate the speed of sound, or figure out how many euros you're going to need to buy that tchotchke. Convert allows you to make calculations within the application, and then converts them on the fly.

It's a smart idea: elegant, simple and functional. If you ever plan to convert anything from the English system to the Metric system, this is an invaluable app. But even for the little things, it proves its worth, and is a value at the cost.