The Otago App, which became available on the first day of Orientation Week, has been under development for a year and cost the university about $100,000 to create.
Information services director Mike Harte said there had been extensive consultation with students about what they wanted, but the app was also available to the wider public.
"Anyone can download it,'' he said.
"It will get better and better the more development we do on it.''
So far about 6000 students had decided to download the app, and Mr Harte predicted a further influx of people would want it during the first week of the first semester, which starts on Monday.
The app includes timetables, a map similar to Google Maps which shows the location of the user and various university buildings.
It also features dates including public lectures, and other resources, such as student webmail, academic programme Blackboard, contacts, and feedback mechanisms for students to say what they think of the app.
Weather was also included on the app, which was linked to the weather station on the university's physics building.
The timetable for Orientation Week and for the university's 150th celebrations this year would also be available.
Students had identified their top three priorities as being having their timetables available, being able to access their marks and grades, and knowing where they were meant to be.
The app was in a basic version at the moment, but it would be updated with new features as time went on.
So far, feedback from students had been very positive, for instance features such as the bilingual English and Maori text were popular.
The app is free to download, from the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.