At the grand of 10 years old, Roo has her first mobile phone. To her, she has waited forever for it, to me, however, I am still very nervous about the prospect of her having her own mobile. Initially, we had always said that she wouldn’t get one until she started high school as she would be travelling via public transport etc, so we’d need to be able to keep in touch with her. However, this year she has started to go out with friends after school and at weekends to the local park or over to their houses. Roo has had to come back to relay messages of where they are off to next, of if she can stay out a bit later etc. So now seemed the best time to get her a mobile phone.
What apps do you have on your phone?
As I sat setting it up with ringtones, privacy settings and a couple of apps I thought about the apps on my phone. Carphone Warehouse has recently released an App Map of Great Britain with Facebook, Google search and YouTube taking the top three spots. Which given that I too am on Facebook far more than I would like to admit, I can fully understand why it took the top spot. YouTube wouldn’t have made it into my top 3, or even my top 10 if I’m honest – I don’t think I utilise YouTube half as much as I should do.
My top phone apps
I’m going to forget social media apps although I do access Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram throughout the day. There are many of the social media ones that I have never used like Snapchat (I just don’t understand it. Hey, I’ve only just started to use WhatsApp so that’s a little step up from SMS.
Anyway, I digress… These are the apps that I use on my phone the most…
TomTom Go
I have to credit this one to Mr. Boo, as we had a love/hate relationship with our sat nav that we used in the car. Yes, we eventually ended up where we needed to be, it just took us on some crazy routes to get there. Finally, last year Mr. Boo downloaded the TomTom Go app for whenever we go anywhere. I have to confess that I love it. It has really gotten me out of some pickles when roads are closed, there are accidents or just bad traffic. The up to date traffic information is so valuable and I can reroute if there is a delay ahead.
Google Maps
Now you might be thinking why am I mentioning Google Maps when I just talked about my love for the TomTom Go app. Well, although I do you Google Maps for navigating the streets of London etc. The main reason I love this app is the ability to share my reviews and photos of places we visit. I’m classed as a Google Local Guide, which I’m currently Level 6 and have over 1.2 million views on my photo uploads. This was originally part of a campaign I was working on a while back but I’m a gamer at heart and the ability to earn points and achievements has sucked me in.
Gmail
As a blogger, I cannot tell you how important it is to be able to access emails whenever and wherever you are. I run several email addresses through my Gmail app so it is always beeping at me throughout the day. This aside, I really do like the functionality of the app and the ability to label emails, move them to folders etc is a great way of ensuring I’m at least half organised (we’ll gloss over the unread and unactioned emails sitting in my inbox).
Camera
No matter where we go I’m always snapping photos of the children. Even if we are just at home, in the garden or on the school run. I love to take photos of them and thankfully they oblige most of the time (I think they have realised that if they comply straight away it is over and done with quicker).
Wunderlist
I only discovered this app earlier this year but it is great for storing all sorts of lists. Plus you have the option to share the lists with others. So I will often make a grocery list on there throughout the day and Mr. Boo will pop into the supermarket on the way home from work and grab whatever I need. It also helps keep track of birthdays and events etc as you can set reminders.
Looking at my list of apps, they are all pretty boring. I really need to jazz things up a little and use ones that are a little more interesting. Nevertheless, they are ones that get me where I need to be and help organise my life.
Collaborative Article
Photo Credit: Juja Han Tran Mau Tri Tam Rami Al-zayat
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