Is there any greater feeling than when it’s time to upgrade your phone? Well…yes, there is, but the rush of turning on your shiny new device is still up there in the list of top ‘greatest’ feelings.
Your device is booted, it’s set up; now you have to decide what to download first. Below are a sampling of my personal Day 1 apps that I must have above anything else.
Twitter (official app)
So many people wonder what the purpose of Twitter is, or how to even use it. Honestly, the explanation is not all that clear to me, either. However, Twitter is a great social medium to connect with friends, family, and even your favorite celebrities. What differentiates Twitter from social media applications like Facebook or Google+ is its 140 character limit in your posts. I think this is what confuses people the most about Twitter, but despite that, it usually is enough characters to say what you need to say.
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Facebook is easily the most popular social media application available today. With the ability to share pictures, videos, and just share your thoughts, Facebook is a great way for you to connect with your family and friends, both close and far away (geographically).
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Chrome Browser
Most Android devices come with a pre-installed generic browser. They’re usually nothing special so we often times find ourselves looking for an alternative. There are many choices available on the Google Play Store such as Dolphin, Fire Fox, or even Opera Mini. However, my personal favorite is Google’s mobile Chrome Browser. It’s fast, stable, reliable, and I really like the user interface. I love Chrome’s ability to sync across multiple devices. This feature is great because it allows me to share bookmarks across devices, which is invaluable for what I do.
Chrome Browser – Google Play Store
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feedly, Sync for reddit, Flipboard
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One of the most important responsibilities of being a tech blogger is keeping up with the latest tech news. There are many outlets out there for this, but my favorites are feedly, Sync for reddit, and Flipboard. I’ve chosen to combine these three in one section because their purposes are essentially identical.
feedly and Flipboard provide a nice RSS feed for your favorite news sources and topics. Both apps have beautiful user interfaces and are very easy to use
Sync for reddit is a great app for keeping up with your favorite sub-reddits. Sync lets you connect your Reddit account to it and gives you access to most of the features you will find on the Reddit site itself, but in a nice, mobile package.
feedly – Google Play Store, Sync for reddit – Google Play Store, Flipboard – Google Play Store
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Spotify
We all love music. Vinyl is making a comeback, which is exciting, but in this day and age, it’s all about digital. The problem is, buying mp3s and albums can get expensive. To help with this, many companies have started offering music subscription services that let you listen to any music you want, as much as you want, for a flat, monthly fee. My personal favorite music service is Spotify.
Why do I like Spotify? Because it’s free and I can listen to whatever artist and album I want. With the free service, you are relegated to only being able to shuffle albums and playlists and you will hear the occasional ad, but quite honestly, I don’t mind this. The ads are usually short and there aren’t many of them. For free, you can’t beat Spotify. Spotify even offers a monthly subscription service that eliminates ads and removes the shuffle play restriction.
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Waze
I get lost; a lot. I even get lost in my home town and I lived there for decades. I tell people that I was born without an internal compass. Thankfully, I live in an age where our planet is cluttered with orbiting satellites, many of which provide GPS. When it comes to GPS apps, there are many choices, but I prefer Waze.
Waze is designed to get you from Point A to Point B as fast as possible. It does this by plotting routes that avoid traffic issues. Waze will literally create a route for you that avoids slow traffic, construction zones, and wrecks. If it will slow you down, Waze will find a way around it. Waze also has a nice social media feature that allows you to connect with your Facebook friends and also shows other Wazers on the map.
One of the best features Waze offers is the ability to report traffic hazards and conditions. You can report potholes, stopped cars, slow traffic, police, red light cameras, traffic accidents, and many other things. You can even unlock achievements!
When it comes to GPS, there is no substitute for Waze. And best of all, it’s free!
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Google Opinion Rewards
Do you like free money? I do, and Google Opinion Rewards gives you the ability to get it. Opinion Rewards will give you Google Play credit for taking the time to answer short surveys. The surveys can last from a few seconds to a couple of minutes. The longer the survey, the more Play credit you get. I’ve been using Google Opinion Rewards since it’s launch and I’ve made close to $15-$20 in Play credit since then. If you’re not using Google Opinion Rewards, download it now; you’re missing out on easy money.
Google Opinion Rewards – Google Play Store
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These are some of my must have day 1 apps that I can’t live without. For brevity’s sake, I have not included them all. What are some of your day 1 necessities? Leave them in the comments below!