App-y holidays!
If you received a new smartphone, tablet or similar gadget from your loved ones this holiday season, don't be overwhelmed by all the options. Your new iPad, iPhone 6, Android phone/tablet, Amazon Fire or Windows Phone has a plethora of options to help you (and entertain you).
For starters, your device comes with a bunch of apps pre-installed: Maps, photos/camera, email, e-readers, local weather, web browser (Safari, Chrome, etc), and utilities (Clock/Timer, Calculator, Calendar, Compass, etc). Different brands also have different exclusive features, like FaceTime on Apple; or Microsoft Office apps on the Windows Phone and Surface tablet.
But what should you add to your phone or tablet? There's something for everyone, and a lot of the options are free.
Here are the 14 best apps you should download first:
1. Google Maps -- Androids already have this, but Apple wants you to use its Maps app (with turn-by-turn directions read out loud by Siri, its virtual assistant). But Apple's maps have had issues since launching in 2012, so get Google Maps, too, which allows you to get directions by car, bus, bike or foot.
2. YouTube -- Again, Androids already have this, but you can get it for free on other devices. How else are you going to watch Jimmy Fallon's latest "Tonight Show" highlights?
3. Facebook/Twitter/Instagram/Vine/LinkedIn -- Whatever your social network of choice is, you can get free apps for all of them.
4. Netflix -- The most popular streaming service, with titles like "Orange is the New Black" and "House of Cards," can be watched on your phone or tablet anywhere you have Internet -- including the gym.
Word to the wise: Only use video or music-streaming services when connected to Wi-Fi, or they will eat up your battery -- and data plan.
5. Pandora/Spotify/Rhapsody/iHeartRadio -- Want to stream music wherever you are? Pandora and Spotify let you do it for free (with ads and limits if you don't have a paid account); Rhapsody is an ad-free subscription service with 32 million songs; and iHeartRadio lets you listen to any Clear Channel iHeartMedia radio station in the country, plus some others like Z89 in Syracuse.
6. Shazam -- Want to know the name of that song you hear in a bar, commercial or on the radio? Shazam can identify most music from just a 5-10 second sample -- for free.
7. TWC TV App, FiOS Mobile or Xfinity TV Remote -- Forgot to set your favorite TV show to record? Time Warner Cable, Verizon FiOS and Comcast Xfinity customers can access their DVRs on the go with their cable service's free apps.
8. Urbanspoon or AroundMe -- Traveling someplace new? Urbanspoon will let you know what the best restaurants are that are closest to you (and even make reservations at some places), and AroundMe will find nearby banks/ATMs, gas stations, grocery stores, parking lots, hospitals and more.
9. Kindle -- Amazon Fire comes with this e-reader, but Android and iPhone users may want this for making reading books on a screen easier. Hey, it's easier than a pesky nightlight and a book when you're in bed.
10. News apps like syracuse.com -- Need to know what's going on in the world? The New York Times, CNN, Fox News, MSNBC, USA Today, and others are available as apps. Central New Yorkers can keep up with free downloads of the syracuse.com app and its sports apps (High School Sports, Syracuse basketball and Syracuse football).
11. Evernote -- Need help with productivity? Lots of people love this one, which lets you create text, audio and video notes to keep up with all the things on your to-do list, including emailing them to your laptop or desktop computer to keep working.
12. Snapchat -- The second-most downloaded app on iTunes in 2014 sees more than 700 million photos shared every day. It's especially popular with younger users, as messages disappear shortly after being viewed
13. Adobe Photoshop Express -- Lots of photo-editing apps exist, including built-in filters for Instagram and other photo-sharing sites. One of the best and easiest ones is PS Express, which has some basic features from Photoshop -- but is free.
14. Games -- Angry Birds, "2048," Candy Crush, Solitaire, Words with Friends and more easy-to-play games are available for free. Because hey, you need something to do while waiting in line (or for the kids on a long car ride).
As far as paid apps go, if you received an iTunes gift card, go to store.apple.com [1] and sign in with your iTunes account (or create one if you don't have one) to redeem your gift card. The amount appears immediately in your account and doesn't have to be spent all at once, so feel free to surf around before buying movies, music, games, books or apps.
Same thing for a Google Play gift card, which can be redeemed at play.google.com/redeem [2] and used for adding apps and entertainment to your Android smartphone, and ditto for an Amazon gift card [3] . Careful with the latter, though -- an Amazon gift card can be used on anything from Amazon, but an Amazon Appstore gift card can only be appl ied to non-Apple mobile devices, such as the Amazon Fire tablet or phone.
What else do you recommend to someone using a new smartphone or tablet? Leave a comment below.
Links
- ^ store.apple.com (store.apple.com)
- ^ play.google.com/redeem (play.google.com)
- ^ Amazon gift card (www.amazon.com)
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