1. Sleep Cycle Alarm Clock

Getting the right amount of sleep is the key to powering through the day, but did you know that waking up in the lightest phase of your sleep cycle will leave you feeling more rested and relaxed? The sleep cycle alarm clock analyzes your sleep cycle by your movement by using the accelerometer in your iPhone and wakes you up in a 30-minute window that you provide in the lightest part of your sleep. This app includes features like a sleep aid sound to help you fall asleep, the option to use any song on your iPhone to wake you up rather than the annoying standard alarm clock tones, and provides you with detailed graphs that explain the quality of your sleep. Ditch your average alarm clock for one that is WAY more intelligent.

2. CNN App for iPhone

If you don’t have time to grab a newspaper or watch the news in the morning, the CNN app with provide you with the top headlines with notifications sent straight to your phone. This app will keep you informed about the top news stories and give you something to talk about during an awkward run-in on the B-Bus to class. Breaking news alerts will be filtered out and delivered straight to your phone, so you will always be in touch with the top news stories.

3. Pandora

In the car, at the gym, or pre-gaming for a night out, you can always count on the Pandora app for the best music entertainment. Choose from a variety of artists and listen to a random assortment of whatever music you are in the mood for. Each station will provide a shuffle of songs either by the same artist or of the same genre. The Pandora app will pump up your pre-game and help you to bang out those last three minutes on the treadmill. 

4. Urbanspoon

Usually the debate about where my friends and I want to eat out is longer than the actual meal itself. Looking for ideas about where to eat? You can customize your town, price range, and preference of cuisine and Urbanspoon will search or “shake” through a database of every restaurant in town to come up with ideas for your next meal. Never get bored again with the variety of food choices that Urbanspoon provides.

5. Shots iGot

Shot glasses are key to avoiding a night over the toilet and a painful hangover. If you run out of shot glasses, no problem! The Shots iGot app lets you choose from a red cup, and Poland spring water bottle, a Snapple bottle, and just about every other drinking container imaginable. What it does is it lets you choose your bottle and fill it up virtually on the screen with the actual amount of alcohol that your bottle contains in reality. Then it determines how many shots you are drinking. This app will save your liver and your dignity.

Photo courtesy of 123rf.com/profile_piksel.