14
Jun
Apps to make life easier
Steve Jobs introduced the iPhone in 2007 and since then our daily habits have been changed unrecognisably. No longer do we clutch bulky phones to our ears and hope for a strong signal. Instead, we are ever connected to the world around us through these seemingly simple devices that have taken over life as we know it. Emails, sharing photos on social networks, chatting to friends via Whatsapp, Snapchat and the likes are part of our daily routines and we can’t image life without it anymore. We’ve spoken to a few app power users to find out which apps have changed their lives for the better:
Genius Scan Plus
Liezl: The first app that I install on a new phone is Genius Scan Plus
If you are tired of stuffing your wallet with receipts or carrying around a stack of business cards, Genius Scan Plus is a no-brainer. It is particularly useful for sending business documents back to the office while traveling. As well as scanning and saving documents to Dropbox
Apple, Android, Windows
Price: Free
Evernote
Mary: Everything I need to jot down is in Evernote
Forget about keeping lists on scraps of paper or multiple notebooks! This productivity tool is equally handy for multi-tasking moms, executives on the run or busy students. You can use it for storing receipts, outlining travel plans or taking meeting notes. Evernote allows you to create written or spoken notes, add pictures, compile notebooks and synchronise these across all your devices – i.e. the notes you add will be available on your phone, tablet, PC or laptop and you won’t have to forget anything ever again.
Apple, Android, Windows
Price: Free
DropBox
Zanele: With Dropbox, I can always access my photos and most important files from anywhere in the world
Dropbox is an incredibly useful cloud-storage service. It lets you upload any file, such as documents or photos, and access those files from a variety of platforms. It even works offline and access to certain documents can be shared between users, making collaboration on projects very easy.
Apple, Android, Windows
Price: Free
See also: Online property rental simplified
Google Maps
Caroline: Google Maps is always spot-on when it comes to directions and travel time
Google maps offers satellite imagery, street maps, 360° panoramic views of streets, real-time traffic conditions, and route planning for traveling by foot, car, bicycle, or public transportation. A must if you want to know how long a journey is going to be and which route has least traffic.
Price: Free
David: If you love reading but don’t want to use all your data, Pocket is the best!
Pocket lets you save blog posts, web pages and articles to read when you’re offline. You can save the content you want to access later from anywhere, including your browser and over 800 apps like Twitter, Flipboard, and Feedly. Once saved to Pocket, you can view the content later even when you are offline.
Apple, Android, Windows
Price: Free
Shazam
Ryan: Shazam that!
This app is nothing short of mind-blowing to build your music collection. With Shazam, you can play the tiniest snippet of a song and the app will reveal the name of the song and the artist. It also links to news about the relevant artist and upcoming concert information.
Apple, Android, Windows
Price: Free
See also: Playing it safe online
Shelley: Whatsapp!
WhatsApp is an app that lets you send messages to other mobile phone users without incurring a charge like traditional SMS. Whether you send individual or group messages, Whatsapp is a quick, cost-effective way to stay in touch with family, friends, co thro
Apple, Android, Windows
Price: Free
Kindle app
Sam: My wife can’t live without her Kindle app
There are millions of books on the Amazon store and the Kindle app connects you to all of them. Get the latest besteseller or download a classic! You need an Amazon account to connect your mobile device to the online store and download your books.
Apple, Android, Windows
Price: Free
Eskom se Push
Themba: I hate it when I get back from work and there is no electricity! With the Eskom se Push app I get alerts about load shedding and can plan ahead.
Eskom se Push is a fairly new app that notifies users of when they will be experiencing load shedding (this is Energy Utility’s method of reducing demand (load) on the energy generation system by temporarily switching off distribution of energy to different geographical areas).
Apple, Android, Windows
Price: Free
There you have it. What are your favourites that are not on the list? And speaking of lists, have you looked at the list of rooms and properties available on www.theroomlink.co.za?
FILED IN 
