The search for the world’s best app

Posted on January 4, 2013

Can mobile apps change the world? Not all of them but a few might. These apps are among those nominated for the World Summit Awards (WSA). To name a few: iPolice is an app from Nigeria that allows citizens to report crimes using their smartphones; Magic Reader, developed in Japan, helps people with disabilities to turn pages on an iPad simply with slight head movements, although it can be very useful also for musicians, cookers, etc.; Social Diabetes, a Spanish app that helps diabetes patients to self-manage their diet and monitor their levels, and Project Noah, a Canadian collaborative tool to explore and document wildlife, with the support of National Geographic. These are just 4 out of the 40 apps winners of the World Summit Awards (WSA).

Some of the features of the app Social Diabetes:

Over 50 mobile experts worldwide have delved among the best apps that aim to “make a difference for the people around the globe”. The International Center for New Media (ICNM) is a global initiative within the framework of the United Nations that on biannual basis selects the best apps worldwide, distributed in 8 different categories:

  • Learning and Education
  • Entertainment and Lifestyle
  • Business & Commerce
  • Government & Participation
  • Environment & Health
  • Tourism & Culture
  • Media & News

On February 3-5th, the awards will be presented in Abu Dhabi during the  WSA mobile global conference in collaboration with UNESCO, UNIDO and UN GAID, and partnering with Abu Dhabi Sys-tems & Information Center (ADSIC). The event will include keynote sessions and workshops about marketing, gaming, mLearning, or mobile sound design.

You can already take a look at the winning apps

, where you might find some interesting although not well known apps; but also some others more popular, like iButterfly, an augmented reality game that helps customers to get discounts and coupons by catching virtual butterflies:

More info about the awards on WSA website, in @WSAoffice, in Facebook, and in WSA Youtube channel.

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