Did you get a new phone for Christmas or Hanukkah?Â
All bright and shiny and perfect…Â
It might not be gold and diamond encrusted like out little friend to the right, but I bet you didn’t even want to take it out of the box, did you?  Â
Well if you’ve managed to take it out and get it set up, you probably can’t wait to find some great new apps to go along with it.
Boy did you come to the right place! We’ve compiled a list of 10 apps that will turn your smartphone into a real genius. And a few of them might even save your or your family’s lives.
1. Find My Phone (iPhone)/Lookout (Android)
The very first app you should put on your new phone is the one that’s going to protect it â€" not to mention all your information. Find My Phone protects your iPhone by helping you locate it if it is ever lost or stolen. With this app, you can signal your phone to ring so you know where to look for it, or if it is stolen, disable your phone and wipe your information. Download the free Find my Phone app from the Apple App Store. Lookout does the same thing for Androids, plus it also acts as anti-virus software for your phone, scanning new apps for malware and periodically scanning all of your apps for potential problems. You can download Lookout free from the Google Play Store.Â
2. Dropbox (iOS/Android)
Dropbox is our favorite online file solution. Since it works on Apple, Android and PCs you can save files from your computer, tablets or phones to Dropbox to make them available on any of your devices. But my favorite feature is photo sync. When you install Dropbox on your phone or tablet it will as you if you want it to send all of the photos you take from your device to your PC. Say yes! That way, the instant you take a picture it will fly directly to the Dropbox folder on your computer and you’ll never again have to worry about downloading your smartphone photos to your computer!
3. Find My Friends (versions for iOS and Android)
The Find My Friends app was created to be just that â€" a quick way to find out where all your friends are hanging out at any given moment. But it doesn’t just locate your friends. Activate it on your kid’s and spouse’s phones and you’ll have a quick, powerful emergency locator to use during emergencies or evacuations. Not only will it show where they are, it also provides street-by-street driving directions to their location.
4. Evernote (iOS/Android)
Part digital notebook, part assistant, Evernote gives you a place to put all of those thoughts, ideas, to do lists, links and pictures that you’re always madly searching for hastily written scraps of paper. It syncs across all of your computers and devices, so that you always have the latest version of what you’re working on at your fingertips. You can use it simply as a notepad or as a multi-subject notebook. And the best part is, it’s fully searchable, to help you find anything you’ve tucked away on Evernote for safekeeping. Added bonus: If you’re using the Grab It And Go Sheets and Action Plans from our books, tuck them or links to them into one notebook on Evernote to give yourself immediate access to all the information you need, when you need it.
5. Keynote (iPhone)/PowerPoint (iOS or Android)
Both Apple’s and Microsoft’s presentation software is now available free for mobile devices. Why is this great news? Because you can use presentation software for nearly anything. You can use it to write and send notes to yourself, save a bunch of clippings, screenshots or links from the web, or edit graphics on the run. You may not know this but both Keynote and PowerPoint are terrific graphic editors. You can resize, recolor, flip, turn, shadow, reflect or even drop the background color out of a graphic in seconds and resave it, without even opening Photoshop. Oh and you can also be boring and use either software to put together or show a quick presentation. :-)
6. Hootsuite
The Hootsuite Dashboard gives you a real-time view of all of your social media feeds in one place. Just connect your Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn or other accounts and you can not only see all of your messages and updates in one screen, but you can also write one message that will post to all your accounts at the same time. Why is this important? Because in an emergency, Hootsuite is the ultimate mobile command center. It gives you the ability to send direct messages to all of your family members or friends that will post to all of their feeds simultaneously â€" whether they’re on Twitter, Facebook or even LinkedIn. It also gives you a place to monitor any messages that they send to you. Instead of logging in and out of your social media accounts, you can see everything that’s going on, find out where your family is and how they are, in seconds.
7. Flipbook
Okay, so this isn’t a life-saving app but it sure does save a lot of time. With Flipbook you can create your own personal magazines. All you have to do is tell it what subjects or Twitter or Facebook accounts you want to follow and it will aggregate all of those messages, videos or updates into feed that looks and reads just like a magazine. Instead of having to take time searching for all the information that you need for work or school or even for fun, all you have to do is go to Flipboard and click on whichever “magazine†you want to read. The ultimate in time-saving apps!
8. Mobile Banking App
If you have an account at a nationwide bank (or larger regional bank) take a few minutes to download their mobile banking app.  Why? Because it can be a real life saver during an evacuation, emergency or any situation where you’re stranded far from home.  Not only will you be able to locate an ATM or branch office (to save on ATM fees),  but with most mobile banking apps, you can even transfer money from one account to another, check the limits on your credit cards, chat with customer service or even deposit checks into your account, simply by snapping a photo of them. Now that’s service!
9. Skype (iOS or Android) /Facetime (iPhone)
We included these two apps because sometimes you just need to see a familiar face. The worst thing about being away from home, or having the people you love in a different location, is feeling disconnected from them. Whether you’re checking on each other during an emergency, or just need to see each other’s faces, Skype and Facetime are both a wonderful way to connect by cellular service or Wi-Fi, if landlines or cell service are down. Making sure you have either of these apps on your phone, gives you one more way of communicating, no matter what is happening around you and your kids â€" even the ones who are away at college.
10. Word (iOS or Android)/Pages (iPhone)/A PDF Reader Â
It doesn’t matter how many Action Plans you have, if you’re not able to see them.  Since we spend a lot of our time showing you how to complete your Grab It And Go Sheets and Family Action Plans [1] , we want to make sure you can actually refer to them, even if the only device you have with you is your phone! So if you have your emergency plans stored on your phone, Dropbox, iCloud or One Drive, make sure you download Word, Pages or a PDF Reader to go along with it. That way, no matter how many plans you have stored in that phone of yours, you’ll actually be able to read them!
11. Around Me (iOS/Android)
Okay so we went overboard and added one bonus app! Around Me is a great little app that uses your location to give you a list of the stores, restaurants and resources right around you. All you have to do is click on bank or cleaners or hospital and Around Me will tell you where they are, whether you’re in your neighborhood or on the other side of the country.
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This is just a fraction of the tools and resources you’ll find in our book “Get Your Stuff Together [2] †now available on Amazon.com for $24.99. Over 200 pages packed with the info you and your family need to keep everything that’s important to you â€" photos, music, videos, data and keepsakes â€" safe from life’s little and not so little emergencies.  Pick up your copy today [3] for $24.99 at Amazon.com [4] .
In our book “Keep This Book In Your iPhone [6] “ [5]  we’ve squeezed all of the information you need to turn your iPhone, Samsung Galaxy or any other smartphone into a real life saver. A few minutes with this book, and you’ll know how to stash all of your vital information, backed up photos, family emergency plans and contacts in your phone, where they’ll be at your fingertips, ready to help you through life’s little speed bumps. Like Superstorm Sandy.   Pick up your copy today [7] for $14.95 at Amazon.com [8] .
Links
- ^ Grab It And Go Sheets and Family Action Plans (www.amazon.com)
- ^ Get Your Stuff Together (www.amazon.com)
- ^ Pick up your copy today (www.amazon.com)
- ^ Amazon.com (www.amazon.com)
- ^ Keep (www.amazon.com)
- ^ This Book In Your iPhone (www.amazon.com)
- ^ Pick up your copy today (www.amazon.com)
- ^ Amazon.com (www.amazon.com)
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