Thursday, March 28, 2024

How to choose the right app for you

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For those of us that own a smartphone, whether it be an Apple or Android, using apps is part of our daily lives. Can you imagine, 10-15 years ago, not being able to check your Facebook status or having to rely on a traditional camera to capture memories? Remember the hassle of visiting a local pharmacy and pay extra to have your film developed in an hour and in color?

I am reminded of the Apple commercial that would show various tasks that a person does and it ends with, “There’s an app for that.” Now, there’s quite literally an app for almost everything and anything.

Every day a new app is being uploaded into Google Play and iTunes hoping to attract users. While some developers do it strictly for fun, many rely on it as a stream of revenue.

Seasoned smartphone users will recognize that some of these new apps happen to be existing titles but maybe with different style, graphics, or fonts.

Take, for instance task lists. There are a lot of them. Examples that immediately come to mind include Evernote, Google Keep, Todoist, and MarkO. Why should I pick one over the other? Or, which is the right one?

Other example of many of the same type of apps include calendars, photo filter apps, keyboards, finance apps, email apps, virus and malware apps, launchers, etc. The list just goes on and on.

Let’s look at the steps you can take to help you find the right apps. As you’ll find, it’s not unlike buying a car or new tech gadget.

Things to look for when choosing an app from a pool of candidates:

 

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Platform support

Is the app available on both iOS and Android? You might want to make sure that at the very least, the app is available in both stores. This way, if you were ever to decide to change platforms (switch from iOS to Android or vice versa), you will still be able to access your information or account details without having to start from scratch.

Online experience

Is there a website for the app? Most of the time, for my task lists, I like to type everything on the website and just let the app sync to my phone. Also, having a website can also give you a little more detailed information about the app and who the developers are.

A full web experience can be helpful should you lose your phone or change to a different platform. Additionally, you can sometimes chat or interact with developers, read FAQs, and generally learn more about the app or game.

Do your homework

Have you read any reviews or seen how many times the app has been downloaded? My rule of thumb is that if at least 51% of all those that reviewed the apps gave it at least 3 stars or higher then I am more likely to at least download it and give the app a try. This is regardless of who the developer is and or how many times it has been downloaded. You may have your own rules, of course.

In dealing with task and note apps, remember that Evernote has been around longer than many of its competitors. It’s perhaps the very reason it could outnumber other similar clients by a 3:1 ratio. In other words, don’t rely too much on overall download counts.

No matter what has been said about the app, I tend to download the app anyway and give it an honest try. Think about when someone told you they didn’t like a particular restaurant. Perhaps you tried it and now it ‘s your favorite spot.

If I can’t get the app to function the way I need it to in the first few tries or days I simply delete it. No use having all these unused apps hogging up all the precious space on my phone right? If it was an app that you liked but could not get it to work at first, keep tabs on it. Sooner or later, it may work for you. It’s possible that your newer phone acts a little wonky and a simple bug fix could alleviate the issue.

Finer details

Let’s talk, for a moment, about cloud storage options. How much storage space are you allotted for photos and files before having to cough up precious money? Sure, most players give you a certain amount for free, but nearly all of them have some sort of limitations.

Indeed, this is something that most people don’t really think about too much because most of the time, we’re downloading games and cameras that allot you only so much space. I am talking about apps such as Dropbox, Box.com, Google, OneDrive, and even iCloud.

Personally, I take a lot of photos, and most of the time, they get uploaded to Dropbox and Google for safe keeping. However, I am at the point though with Dropbox that I am reaching my maximum. If I want to continue to upload any more files with Dropbox, I will have to pay an extra $37.50/month.

Sure, I can go in and delete duplicates or blurry photos but that will only probably give me a small amount back. More importantly, it will take up valuable time. Compare my needs to what Google offers at $1.99/month (100GB) and it makes sense.

Brand affinity

Are you loyal only to certain developers? When it comes to specific apps like word games, I like to stick with Zynga. As I see it most of the clones out there really don’t cut it. Perhaps you’ve got a brand or developer who plays nicely with others in the space. If you’re choosing between multiple companies on an app, look deeper and see if they are tied up with someone you’re fond of… or maybe not so fond of.

Up-front and long-term costs

Is free really free? Keep in mind that even though there are many apps that are free, full functionality may be limited unless you are willing to spend the full $4.99. Some apps may charge you a one time upgrade fee, but others (Evernote, Spotify, etc) might require a minimum monthly plan.

Developers want to give you a taste of what their app can offer. The app can offer anything from more better protection of your Android phone, bonus bombs for your games, or more space on their servers to store your files. Depending on what’s most important to you it may be easy to justify these costs.

Many developers create apps on a daily basis mainly to give you as a user, easier ways to manage time and tasks. While you don’t have to try every single app that comes out, do take the time to see if a new app will help make life a little more simple for you. It is important to make sure that the app does what it says and that it will in fact help you accomplish your goals.

 

The post How to choose the right app for you appeared first on AndroidGuys.

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