i192 – consumer app of the week
A directory enquiries for businesses and individuals. But is it worth it when the internet gives up much of this information anyway?
App: i192
By: i-CD Publishing
Price: Free
Available on: iPhone and iPod touch (requires iOS 3.0 or later)
What is it?
An app promising free directory enquiries and information on businesses, as well as access to electoral roll records.
Who is it by?
i-CD Publishing was founded in 1997 and offers search tools for finding information on people and businesses.
What does it promise?
“Search over 4m businesses at the touch of a button and 11m people for free. Premium data costing £1.19 in the UK per search reveals 24m edited Electoral Roll records and 5m Director Records, putting the UK in your pocket.”
How does it work?
Use one-tap icons to access phone number and location details for hotels, petrol stations, banks, shops and other outlets near you. Users can also search for people and businesses near them. Searches throw up free and premium results, and include integrated maps.
Is it easy to use?
The search tools are quick and helpful, particularly for things such as petrol stations when speedy results might help fuel-starved drivers. But the results are less useful if you are looking for a particular place. If, for example, you want to find a certain shop you would probably be better off searching via GoogleMaps or using your internet browser.
Another niggle is that you can only search near your current location. If the app cannot find anything near you, it tells you to change your search criteria, but I could find no way of doing this. I could only switch between searching for “people” or “businesses” rather than location.
The app claims that users can swipe between daytime and evening screens to access the most relevant icons, but there are only two differences between the screens with the daytime “cafes” and “shops” categories swapping to “bars” and “entertainment”. This is at best confusing and at worst pointless.
Is it fun?
You would have to be a serious nerd to enjoy searching for phone numbers and addresses – or perhaps auditioning for a new series of You Bet!.
Is it pretty?
While it won’t win any design awards, the one-tap icons are nice enough and a pleasant yellow and blue theme runs throughout.
Should you download it?
Despite it being free, I’m not convinced. I think the app misunderstands what mobile means. A mobile device should not just allow you to search for things near your current location; it should also allow you to perform functions you might ordinarily do at a fixed computer, such as look up a number or address.
You might, for example, want to look for a shop near your home while you are enjoying lunch miles away, but the 192 app doesn’t allow you to do this. Moreover, it makes a mockery of the idea that you can search more than 4m businesses and 11m people – that is unless they are all located in your immediate area.
I am also unconvinced that ordinary consumers will get much out of this, unless they are desperate to discover someone’s home phone number. Bog-standard business details can be found via a browser using Google and/or LinkedIn.
But maybe I’m not the target market for this. Business users are clearly a big part of this app’s focus and I am sure the ability to search “Director Records” is catnip for them. People who regularly use directory enquiries might find it equally seductive.
Recent reviews on iTunes are generally enthusiastic, ranging from “very impressed” to “I love this app, much better than Yell”. But there are negative reviews too, one of which states: “Does not find anything you type, does find surrounding businesses though”.
The latter echoes my underwhelming experience perfectly. Until future releases of this app include the ability to refine results better, allow users to search across the UK rather solely at their current location, and improves its functionality, I’ll stick to what I know best: Google and LinkedIn searches.
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