The iPhone came built-in with many useful apps – but what about a currency converter? Not everyone might need a currency converter, but the same argument goes, not everyone needs the Stocks application.
If you never appreciated the Stocks application, you would now. Aside to showing you some data that might not make sense, the Stocks application also doubles up as a currency converter. One that can even show you some historical data about the said currency!
Here’s the trick. Launch the Stocks application. Tap on the little i icon over at the bottom right corner to flip the application over and see its innards. You’ll see a list of stock quotes that are already pre-defined.
We are going to pre-define our very own currency conversion codes. Let’s say you want to find out how much is one US dollar worth when converted to the British pound. Use this format: [Currency Symbol A][Currency Symbol B]=X, like this USDGBP=X. Type ‘USDGBP=X‘ into the text box above followed by the search button. Tap on the result to have it added into your list. It’s that simple. As you can see in the screenshot, I have got three different conversions added into my list. Tap on the Done button to return. You’ll see the current conversion rate, and also a nice little graph at the bottom that depicts the historical data. Voila!
The system uses three-character currency codes. Most of us will find this page over at Yahoo!’s financial portal useful: http://finance.yahoo.com/currency
Note that this trick would require an internet connection in order to work its magic. If you prefer, check out our review of an app called Currencies (4.5/5.0 Taps) that does not require an active internet connection to work.
April 27th, 2009 at 7:16 pm
For a second, I thought you went into Forex trading
You’re quite good in writing. Maybe you can look into sending articles to magazines. Just a thought.
April 27th, 2009 at 7:41 pm
Thanks for the compliments, MoneyMagnetBabe!