The best Android and iPhone apps

Smartphones are present in every aspect of our lives. The devices of today are no longer only used for calling or sending text messages. They offer more advanced communication possibilities. They also assist in organising one’s personal and professional life. Find out which smartphone apps will make your daily life easier.

Smartphone apps – what do you need to know?

Most likely, you are a smartphone user. As you may know, there is a large variety of smartphone apps available. When creating a “must have” list it is worth taking one thing into account: the devices most commonly used today operate on the basis of two key operating systems. Products supplied by Apple run on iOs, while other devices run on Android. This is the reason why a lot of applications will be available only for one of the operating systems mentioned above. However, in the case of the most popular apps, they will usually be offered for both, iOS and Android, which you will find out later in this article.

Enough is enough – don’t overdo it with the apps

I’m sure you’ve heard this before. It turns out that this expression also applies to smartphones. Especially when you use an Android-based device. This is an open-source software, meaning that its source code is open and practically anyone can create an app.

For this reason, users of such devices have an availability of thousands of apps in the Google Play Store, while many of them offer the same features. It’s easy to get lost in this huge choice, or what’s even worse, install whatever comes up on the screen which will effectively clog your phone and it will start operating significantly slower. It is worth keeping this in mind and choosing your apps reasonably.

The best Android and iPhone messengers

Smartphones are still great tools that make simple communication possible. Internet access available virtually anywhere is a huge convenience. It reduces costs of international calls due to one simple reason: all you need is WiFi access in New Zealand, for instance, to call your brother in Poland for free. The following applications for communication will provide you with the biggest benefits (both for Android and iOS):

Messenger – Initially, it was designed for sending messages within Facebook. Now, it is a separate application. It makes it possible to send text messages, files, create group conversations, making video calls (individual and group calls), sending location and many more;

Skype – It was developed even before the smartphone era. In general, it is no different from the Messenger. It offers making video calls even with poor Internet quality;

An application for calling and sending text messages is an absolute must have! After all, smartphones are mainly used for GSM calls;

Social networking apps are also mandatory, e.g. Facebook (obviously), Twitter (latest news), LinkedIn (creating your personal brand), Instagram (if you like photos), Pinterest (for inspiration), and many more;

Whatsapp – One of the most popular mobile apps for communication. It makes it possible to text and call your friends, family and co-workers, as well as to create conversation groups, where you can invite many people. It also has the possibility of sending photos, documents or even recording voice messages.

Applications for supporting productiveness

How often did you forget something important? How many times did you read an important e-mail and forgot to reply? With the appropriate smartphone applications, you could avoid such problems. We have in mind specifically the following apps:

Microsoft To Do or Todoist – Both are used for the same purpose but the one offered by Microsoft has less features. In general, both apps make it possible to create to do lists that will simplify control over your daily tasks. If the features of Todoist are insufficient, try Evernote.

Outlook – This application makes it possible to stay up to date with your emails, even if you use several mailboxes. Additionally, Outlook features an integrated calendar that will make you remember important events and anniversaries;

Google Drive or OneDrive – Both applications are used for storing files in a cloud. The first one is integrated with all your Google accounts, while the other with Microsoft account. You just have to decide which service you use more often: Google or Microsoft;

RescueTime (only for Android) – Do you know how much time you spend on Facebook or Instagram daily? It turns out that it may even be several hours per day! Thanks to RescueTime for Android, you will be able to see precisely measured time spent on using certain applications on your smartphone. How can this help you? You will be able to manage your time reasonably and limit pointless scrolling on Facebook.

Applications that will be handy when you need information

The current features of smartphones make it possible to access knowledge and information resources from anywhere in the world. You will find what you’re looking for regardless of whether you want to listen to lectures, educational podcasts or simply find out what’s happening in your country or the world. Consider the following applications for your smartphones.

Feedly – The best RSS reader for Android and iOS. It will make it possible to follow the latest updates regarding different areas, such as: business, general news, blogs, cars, etc.

TED – This is the best platform that offers lectures regarding various subjects. All knowledge resources are available at hand – all you need is to install this mobile application;

Pocket – Have you come across an interesting article but have no time to read it? You don’t have to add anything to bookmarks. All you need to do is save the interesting article to later find it easily;

Legimi or Goodreads – Thanks to these applications, you will have access to thousands of e-books that you may find interesting. It offers everything from prose to books on business, anything you need at a given point;

Pocket Casts – How to combine entertainment with something beneficial? Can you learn something new when washing up? It turns out you can! All you need to do is download Pocket Casts. This is an application used for playing podcasts available for iOS and Android. From now on, even vacuum cleaning can be a great excuse for listening to an interesting interview.

Smartphone apps for entertainment

With all the apps available, you can’t miss out on those that will simply entertain you. You don’t always have to watch podcasts or read motivational and educational e-books. This is why your phone should contain the following apps:

Netflix and/or HGO GO – Streaming platforms for watching the best films and series. With both applications handy, you really don’t need anything else if you’re a fan of good films;

YouTube – It is worth having handy access to your favourite music videos, documentaries and many other video materials. Due to the huge YouTube resources, this item might as well be classified in the “Knowledge and information” category.

Spotify – Probably the best music streaming app;

Amazon Kindle – Useful application if you don’t have your e-book reader with you and you want to finish a book you recently read.

In the “Entertainment” category, it is worth finding local apps. They are often created not only for tourists but also for locals. They will provide you with information about local artistic and cultural events, general local information and a list of the most interesting places that are worth seeing.

What are some other useful applications for your smartphone?

Currently, smartphones offer a huge variety of possibilities. Thanks to mobile apps you can learn foreign languages (Duolingo, Babbel or Hello Talk Learn), find a route to your destination (Google Maps or Yanosik), have parental control (YouTube Kids, Family Link or Kids Place), store and edit photos (Google Photos, Canva or Snapseed), manage finances (Kwitki, Spending Tracker or Guilt), translate conversions in real time (Google Translate or Microsoft Translator) and many more! With such a big repository of varied apps, keep in mind that enough is enough. Install and keep only those apps that will be useful. Let us know which of the above-listed applications will be useful in your daily life.

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