iWant

Available In: App Store

Price: Free

iWant is an application that allows you to look up venues that are near your current location. When you open the application, it will locate your current location. You will then get a screen with 12 icons. There is also a Settings icon and Map icon on the lower part of the screen. The Map option will show the results on a map instead of in a list. In the Setting, you have the option to adjust the search radius from less than a mile to five miles, the ability to sort your search by Rating (based on a five star rating) or Distance and the ability to change the Restaurant filter so that it only searches for a certain type of restaurant near you instead of all restaurants. Once you have all the Settings the way you would like them, select the Done option in the lower left corner.

Now all you have to do is select one of the icons and it will bring up a list of those venues that are with-in 5 miles (that is the distance I chose in the Settings) of your current location. Following is a list of what each icon represents from left to right; Restaurants, Bars, Cafes, Grocery Stores, Drug Stores, Clothing Stores, Movies, Hotels, Department Stores, Banks, Gas Stations and Car Rentals. When you select one of the venues, you will get a list of relevant findings. The list will display the Venue’s Title, Address and Star Rating. If you select one of the options, it will also give you the Phone number (which you can select and call), a map of the location of the venue and reviews of the venue. You can also select the Map option in the lower right corner and it will put the venue on the map. However, the map shows your current location and then displays little red arrows showing which way you need to move the map in order to find the venue on the map. It can be a little tricky to navigate. The map really needs the ability to zoom in and out…that would help a ton.

iWant seems to have a decent list of venues. The only thing missing is Coffee Shops. The Coffee Shops around me to not show up in the Restaurants or Cafes list. This application is all about personal preference. Obviously you can search for most of these things using Google Maps however, if you prefer to see the results in a list view…this might be the application for you.

Click HERE to download iWant via the App Store.