Google Play Store has lots of store specific apps. A quick search on the Play Store for the stores in your area should give you a good idea of what’s available and if they fit the bill for your purposes. If you'd be considering an iPhone, you can do the same in their App Store, I'm sure. You could possibly even try out the apps on your iPad just to see if they're what you're looking for (if not, just uninstall).
I’ve been using the android app OUT OF MILK SHOPPING LIST by Capigami, Inc. for about 2 years. They keep making it better and better, more and more useful all the time. Something that is new in the last several months has been the integration of store deals near the user’s area. For instance, in my area they show me specials for the following stores:
Albertson’s, Brookshire’s, Tom Thumb, CVS Pharmacy, Kroger, Save-A-Lot, COSTCO, ALDI, Central Market, Central Market (HEB), Dollar General, Family Dollar, Greenling, Market Street, Sam’s Club, Sunflower Farmers Market, Target, Terry’s Supermarkets, The Fresh Market, Trader Joe’s, Walgreen’s, Walmart Supercenter, Whole Foods, and they’re always adding more.
When you touch on a listed item, it adds the item to your shopping list. You can create countless shopping, pantry, and to-do lists, organize them however you want, mark whether an item is taxable, if you have a coupon for the item, you can scan an item from your pantry, type it manually, or add by voice input. As yet it doesn’t import electronic coupons into the app, but I wouldn’t be surprised if that was on the horizon.
Most grocery stores have loyalty cards. And many of these grocery stores offer electronic coupons on their web sites that you can click on and have magically downloaded to your card. When the card is swiped at checkout, you get the coupon savings. Kroger, for one, also has a free coupon Friday download. They send you an email each Friday telling you what item they’re offering electronically for free. You can only download it on that Friday but the coupon is good for about 2 weeks or so. Kroger loyalty card also offers $.10 per gallon off of Shell gasoline with accumulated points based on how much you spend at the store.
As to whether it would be cost effective to get a smartphone basically for saving money at the grocery store, well, probably not if that’s all you’d want it for. The cost of service and data plan, even on a no contract unlimited plan, would most likely cost more than you’d save in that regard. You’d probably do just as well by using electronic coupons on loyalty cards and clipping paper coupons and following sales circulars.
Well, that probably didn't tell you much more than you already knew, but since I don't know everything you already knew, I wouldn't know how much more of what I know to tell you. I could probably tell you more (not that I necessarily know much more), but I've probably already strayed from the direct answers you were hoping for.
