1. Portable North Pole
Portable North Pole has become an annual tradition in many homes across the globe. It allows you to create highly personalized video and audio content for your children right from your phone. You can get video and audio calls from Santa, one-way video messages, and even background information about the goings-on at the North Pole with appearances from the elves, reindeer, and Mrs Claus, too.
The app is also packed full of extra features like games and activities that your kids can do, all safely protected in the Kid’s Corner to help keep the magic of the season alive.
You do only have access to limited content with a free account, but an annual pass only costs around $10, and the creators are constantly adding new content for you to enjoy each year. If you only feel like dipping your toe into the pool of content that the app has to offer, you can get a single video for closer to $5.
Either way, you can be sure it’ll be a magical experience for the children in your life.
Download: Portable North Pole (Free, subscription available)
2. Elf Cam
After The Elf on a Shelf brand exploded a few years ago, children all over the world have become enamored by the idea of tiny little elves running around their homes when they’re not looking. If you want to bring this idea into your own home, then Elf Cam is your perfect opportunity to do so.
This app allows you to create a video using AR tech to make it seem like a mischievous little elf is running around your home.
You have a lot of control over the elf in question. You can customize what they look like and control the path the elf takes and the animations of the elf when it gets to specific points on the course. The resulting videos are utterly charming and are sure to delight any young children who see them.
Unfortunately, you can’t save or share the videos you’ve created without unlocking the app first, which will run you $1.99, but at such a low price, it’s worth it.
Download: Elf Cam (Free, premium version available)
3. Santa Tracker
Santa Tracker does exactly what it says on the tin; it tracks Santa for you. When you boot the app, it’ll present you with a countdown to when Santa leaves the North Pole to deliver to your particular location, as well as the option to track where he is right now.
When you follow him before December 24, the app will even update you on which section of the naughty and nice list he’s currently checking (twice).
As well as the tracking feature, the app comes with animations showing exactly what Santa does during the rest of December. These are unlocked as you use the app, but you can pay $1.99 for the premium version if you want to see them all straight away.
Download: Santa Tracker (Free, premium version available)
4. Speak to Santa
Speak to Santa is similar to Portable North Pole but focuses exclusively on video and audio calling rather than one-way video messages.
Just like Portable North Pole, you can customize the experience for your child, even down to what Santa tells them. So if you’re trying to convince your child that Santa wants them to behave better or wants them to brush their teeth, this is the app for you.
While it certainly doesn’t manage to pull off the same level of polish as Portable North Pole, Speak to Santa is an excellent option if you want more control over precisely what Santa is saying. It costs around $10 a year, just like PNP, but you can elect to spend $30 instead to get a lifetime pass for the app, which is a nice option.
Download: Speak to Santa (Free, subscription available)
5. Catch Santa AR
If you’d rather have a slightly less interactive version of Santa to show off to your children, then you should check out Catch Santa AR. This app also uses AR tech similarly to Elf Cam, but it’s the big man himself who appears in your home in this version.
Map out your floor and pick a scenario to get a great video showing Santa in your own home. You can have him showing up to drop off presents, sneaking by, or even talking to you as if he has been caught during his delivery.
These videos are the perfect thing to show your children on Christmas morning to prove that you’ve seen Santa. Like most apps, Santa AR features some in-app purchases, with nine different scenarios available for $0.99 each, or you can buy the whole package for $5.99 if you like the app enough.
Download: Catch Santa AR (Free, in-app purchases available)
6. Santa’s Naughty or Nice List
If you have a child in your life and you need them to start behaving better, then you should try out Santa’s Naughty and Nice List. There are plenty of naughty or nice list apps that pretend to scan your finger and then give your child a random result. The problem with most of them is that you can’t control the outcome, which could lead to a well-behaved child becoming unduly upset.
Santa’s Naughty or Nice List lets you pick what will happen in the options menu and even throws in a bonus photo booth mode and mini-game. There’s no premium content in the app, but if you want to get rid of the ads, you can spend $0.99 to remove them.
Download: Santa’s Naughty or Nice List (Free, in-app purchases available)
Keeping the Magic Alive With Technology
With these apps installed, you should have no trouble keeping the magic alive for your kids this Christmas season. There are plenty of great options when it comes to keeping your children content and entertained during the holidays, a lot of them thanks to modern technology.
