Filtering through the volume of Singapore's general election-related content for information can be quite a bother - which is likely why both Singapore's ruling party and one opposition party launched mobile apps ahead of Friday's polls.
The People's Action Party – which has been Singapore's ruling party for the past 56 years – had integrated social media and technology into its strategy at the 2011 general elections to gain traction online, but only launched the PAP4SG mobile app in August this year.
A major center-left opposition party, The Worker's Party responded quickly with its own WP News mobile app.
How they look?
PAP4SG features a image slideshow and videos on top of the latest news and information. It also connects users to the People's Action Party's social media platforms like Twitter, Instagram and even Pinterest. The app's winning function is undoubtedly the 'Sticker Cam', which lets party-enthusiasts decorate photos with PAP stickers.
In the PAP4SG mobile app, the user is greeted by name at the home page when the app is launched. As any app developer ought to know, small details can make all the difference for a positive user experience.
However, one downside to the app is when it is launched for the first time, the user is prompted to input a name and postal code. While this is intended to streamline and customize information to the user's constituency, some users might be uncomfortable sharing personal information.
"It would have been better to use [PAP4SG] app while remaining anonymous, I don't like that they could potentially track my actions," said Singaporean Reuben Tham.
In comparison to the PAP4SG, WP News is a no-frills mobile app, with three sections: 'Featured', 'In The News' and 'On The Ground.'
The app does a decent job by providing up-to-date information about rally details, candidates' information and media coverage of the Workers Party. However, several images of Workers Party candidates or of party rallies within the app are fuzzy. In addition, a pixilated Workers' Party logo appears while the app loads when it is launched.
Both apps are given ratings of 4.7 out of 5 on Google Play reviews, and are available for download on Apple iOS and Android operating systems.
Clarification: An earlier version of this story incorrectly reported that PAP had been Singapore's ruling party for 66 years.