It’s a bit weird. When I took home my first smartphone I consumed apps with an insane appetite. I downloaded new apps daily. I researched, I spoke with friends, we shared tips. Now? I have a go to list of apps that I use and I don’t really explore or experiment. This is why I want to ask you, dear friends, what are your favourite apps?
It can be Android or iOS. Even Windows phone stuff if you’re that way inclined!
Me? I use the Facebook app, the official twitter app… um. I use the Mango app on Android to read manga. I use a thing called the Beastmaker app to do climbing workouts. What else? Once upon a time I used the Google Reader app.
To be perfectly honest I’m a simple guy when it comes to non-gaming applications, but I can’t help but feel as though I’m underusing a lot of my technology. Any suggestions? What works for you?
Comments
33 responses to “Off Topic: Your Favourite Non-Gaming Mobile Apps”
Well for my 2 cents that will not contribute to this story, but I’ll post it anyway because I’m bored, I still used an old school phone. I refuse to call it a ‘dumb phone’ as it is what it is claimed to be, just a phone. It has lasted me 6 years so far, I still get 6 days battery life between charges, and I feel no compelling reason to upgrade every year like those with ‘smart phones’ feel the need for.
But that’s just me. I get enough of computers and internet in my day job, I don’t need internet with me 24 hours a day in case someone posts a new pic of their kid/pet.
So my number one app is my contact list I guess, it’s the most used feature of the phone anyway
The term used by retailers is “feature phone”. I think it is because they only have one feature.
I did not know that. Cheers 🙂
Nice to hear someone doesn’t have to follow the yearly hype train.
Personally i do enjoy using smart-phones, but nowhere near to the extent some people use them. I buy a phone, I expect it to last me 3-4 years, not 1 year cycles. I’ll also never go for the high-end phones, as that kind of power really goes unused, and is just wasted money.
I’m on a LG Optimus Black atm, for the past 3 years. It cost me nothing on my plan (though i think it was $200-$300 outright), and I love it. Its functional, it still keeps up in terms of running apps, and with a little work, I get all the OS features I need from Android. Next time I upgrade i’ll likely get the Nexus 4, again, a cheap phone that is plenty good enough. And it will likely only get cheaper once the new Nexus phone is announced and released.
I live for the hype train, because it lets me get bargain phones that perform just as well, if not good enough then the rest, and for what I use them for. (Calling, Texting, Occassional web browsing, occassional GPS usage, and some light facebooking etc.) And the camera never hurts 😉
Probably the messages app, I love iMessage. Makes it much more simple to text my friends in far away lands. Seems boring I know, but oh so handy.
Double post bug.
Clear – Really simple todo lists with a great interface.
Banking app – Whoever you bank with. I find mobile banking is the safest alternative.
MyFitnessPal – If you’re trying to lose weight, this app rocks.
JEFIT – If you’re looking at a big list of exercises to keep track of at the gym.
WhatsApp – For sharing stuff with friends.
TED – Self explanatory.
Evernote – Great for keeping track of ideas/notes.
Was going to link to the App Store but that’ll get this comment moderated. 🙂
I’d say the three apps I use most are my internet banking app (which I use for all banking now including paying bills and transferring money), Twitter (just the offical Twitter app, nothing fancy like Tweetdeck), and Alien Blue (for Reddit).
ANZ app and a flashlight app are all I really use. I feel like Smartphones are targeted as being amazing things that can do absolutely everything you can think of, but when it comes down to it most people just use their’s for Facebook
Those were the two that came to my mind.
If you have an iPhone with iOS7 you don’t even need a flashlight app anymore, it’s integrated into the OS.
Same with Android. It has a widget dedicated to it. Extremely handy.
No it doesn’t. That’s probably TouchWiz or HTC Sense.
Oh well obviously not all Android then, but my Galaxy S4 had it when I bought it.
Windows Phone here. All I really use is 6tag (awesome third party Instagram client), Bible, Facebook, Twitter, Flashlight, MyTube (great youtube app), Nokia HERE Maps, Runtastic (for logging my jogs), and OneNote. Can’t live without OneNote, I pretty much use it as my main word processing program these days 😛
I feel the same way as you, I definitely think I’m underusing my phone when it comes to non-gaming apps too… I spend almost all my time on my phone in the web browser, because it already has everything I need.
All these are for my GS4 (Android):
BeyondPod (podcasts), UltimateGuitar Tabs/App (full version has a tuner, metronome, etc), Vine, IMDB, Wikipedia, NBA GameTime, Westpac, ESPN ScoreCenter, SketchBook Pro(paint type application), Vault (hidden folder), Ringtone Maker, Crust (pizza), Skype, TeamViewer (remote access), SwiftKey (awesome keyboard), TuneIn Radio (only just got, but decent), Spawn 3D, What’s App and Chrome.
My bank app, chrome, hangouts is great too.
Also ingress. Because it’s not really a game. It’s real 😉
Sketchbook Pro – perfect for quick photochops, editing directions onto maps to send to people, drawing penises onto things.
Pocket weather – BOM info. Priceless.
Trip view – EVERYONE in Sydney needs this app. Couldn’t do public transport without it anymore.
Yep, pocket weather is one of the first I bought, and the best.
Hmmm, Tripview & Hanping Pro (chinese dictionary app) <– great apps which I paid for
Sketchbook mobile seems to be pretty well-designed, I think I’ll pay for the full version when I have more time to doodle. I also use Instagram, Whatsapp and the Comixology/Marvel comic apps, though I don’t have a whole lot on there. Just going through the ~400 or so comics Marvel put out for free a while back. I also use Twitch but it’s kinda bleh and I wouldn’t really recommend it.
TPE: The Photographer’s Ephemeris It’s essentially a combination of almanac + maps which shows you the direction and time of sun/moon rise/set, angle of elevation, and other features. Great for planning photography. Available for iOS and Android, as well as Win/Mac
That’s pretty much the only non-games app I use, except for Ease in To 5K / RunHelper.
Bank app, Twitter, Crunchyroll, and Android Troper.
Spotify – rulz!
Whatsapp – communication
Instagram – follow genre-specifc photographers/bloggers
Hipstamatic – take hipster pictures
Feedly – good RSS compiler
Weatherzone – WEATHER
Strava – running and cycling tracker/history
TripView – transport timetable.
Telstra 24×7 – monitor my data usage.
The official XBMC remote. Handy for browsing and changing music from anywhere in the house.
Reddit Sync. The best Reddit app there is.
Tram Hunter, Pocket Weather (my absolute favourite non-gaming app), Google Maps, DC (by comiXology)/Marvel Comics, Google Translate and Chrome
Shazam, nuff said.
Google Sky Map
Great for when you’re not good with telescopes but want to know where to point it to see stuff.
Facebook – Fairly self explanatory
OnTrack – Invaluable for managing my Type 1 Diabetes
Australian Carb Counter – Same reason as above
Twitter – 140 characters blah blah blah
Instagram – Hipsterific
GetGlue – To let people know what I’m watching.
NFL Offical App – NFL News and Fantasy
NFL Gamepass – NFL games on the Go!
Comixology – Comics…..
Weatherzone + – To let me know how much I’m going to hate how hot it is
BeyondPod Pro – Potaku and other podcasts
Scanner Radio Pro – Listen to all that’s going down around my area
Newcastle Permanent Banking – Money Dealio
XE – To let me know how bad the AUD $ is going
One of my favourites is My Tracks:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.google.android.maps.mytracks
While there are other apps that can record GPS logs from my phone, I like the fact that the data in My Tracks isn’t locked down in a particular web portal. In addition to keeping track of cycling or hiking, the fact that the data is accessible let me do things like geotag the photos from my DSLR by matching up the time stamps.
Belle Extra Buttons. It adds extra functionality and makes things much easier to access, I couldn’t live without it now. It’s about the only one I frequently use that’s been added to the phone rather than being something that’s part of the system software to begin with.
Otherwise my next most used would probably be Camera and Maps/Drive. But they don’t really get used that often. The other day I added FuelMate, I guess it seems kinda handy for tracking all that data. Mmm, data.
6tag is a fantastic Instagram app on Windows Phone 8. The functionality is damn near flawless and it looks great. He really made the aesthetics compliment the WP8 interface. If you have a WP8 device and are wondering where the hell your Instagram app is; go to the marketplace, search for 6tag and download it. Now.
Tinder
Aldiko Reader: So I don’t have to buy physical books
Facebook: Duh
ES File Explorer: Local and network files
VLC: Playing network videos and movies
My Galaxy S1 is my all in one device :3