After spending considerable time with my comrades, GT staff members, I found a common set of apps and tools they use to make their lives better. While they are always looking to save an additional tap or few seconds, they swear by their favorite apps. So today, I am sharing some of the best apps that you can try to eke your phone’s potential. Let’s begin.
1. SMS Organizer
One of the most common apps that you will find on every Android smartphone at our office. SMS Organizer reads your messages then performs a responsible action such as creating smart reminders for flights, credit card bills, and other events with dates. There is a button to copy OTP directly, so you don’t have to enter it manually. The app organizes all text messages into four tabs: Personal (from contacts), Transactions (banking, purchase related), Promotions (spam), and Starred. You can quickly mute contacts, schedule messages to send at a later date, and filter unread messages. Bring sanity to your SMS inbox and never forget a thing again. And, oh, it has a dark mode and offers smart backups. Download SMS Organizer
2. Dashlane
Dashlane is the preferred password manager of my team. I am moving everything from LastPass to Dashlane because of the repeated hacks and vulnerabilities that the platform has faced in recent years. Dashlane is available on all platforms. It provides some nifty features like 2FA, biometric/face ID unlock, autofill, secure notes, and an intuitive UI. One feature that sets it apart is the ability to change passwords in bulk, on supported sites, in the event of a potential hack. Another one is secure sharing where you can share login details with anyone without essentially sharing passwords. The only downside is the price which is slightly higher than the competition, but when your entire digital life is on the line, money is just a number in my opinion. Download Dashlane
3. Apps by Google
We love Google apps at GT and use them all the time to get through our day’s work. Google Authenticator is our preferred 2FA app for securing access to important sites. Google Keep Notes serves helpful in taking notes on the fly since we find it easy to store them digitally and we believe in saving paper. We use Google Docs to write articles, and other Drive apps to make sense of data and keep files in sync. Finally, Snapseed is our preferred image editing tool, and we have covered Snapseed’s best filters, settings, and tips extensively. However, some of us are also fans of PicsArt and use it for a different set of tools. We also provided the best editing tips and tricks for PicsArt. After spending hours and days on debating the best image editing tool, we even rendered the Snapseed vs. PicsArt comparison. I like to use the Gboard keyboard app since it integrates other Google services neatly, but SwiftKey is equally popular in the house.
4. Solid File Explorer
Solid File Explorer, as the name suggests, is a reliable alternative to the default explorer app or the popular ES File Explorer which comes with ads, unnecessary features, and the UI is not that intuitive anymore. We like Solid Explorer’s material two-panel design, easy to use interface, and the ability to stream songs from cloud storage sites on the fly. For your convenience, we chalked out the differences between Solid Explorer and ES File Explorer. Download Solid File Explorer
5. Feedly
Keeping tabs on what is happening in the tech domain is not only our passion but also our need. And we admit being addicted to reading the RSS feeds, and for that, we rely on Feedly. It is an RSS aggregator app that is free to use and allows you to add any blog or site with an RSS feed to your account. You can then create folders for each niche or topic and consume news as they happen around you. Feedly is the top destination to search for multiple sites sharing information via RSS feeds, reading them, and sharing breaking news – all in one neat package. Not only that, but it also supports your favorite YouTube channels and influencers on Twitter. Do check out the Guiding Tech’s YouTube channel for fun and informational videos on technology. Download Feedly
6. Apple Music/Spotify
When it comes to our music listening preferences, we are united in diversity. Some of us like to use Apple Music for the daily dose of melodies. While others have found ways to use Spotify which is yet to launch in several regions. We have covered Spotify in great detail too, and you will find some valuable tips by just searching for them. While premium music subscription service has their merits, some of us have our collection and like to listen to them offline. We had a heated debate over BlackPlayer vs. GoneMAD, and most settled for GoneMAD as a preferred music player app for listening to music offline. GoneMAD offers tons of themes and customization options to help you get a personalized listening experience. Download Apple Music
7. Contextual App Folder (C.A.F)
CAF is a little-known app that has mostly been on my radar for the longest time. CAF aims to automate certain parts of your life by creating a smart folder of apps with context. Say, you want to launch a navigation app every time you connect the smartphone to your car, and CAF will use your GPS to do it automatically. Feel like going for a run? CAF will launch your favorite running app the moment you hit the gym or that garden near your home. The best thing about CAF is that you don’t need to change your launcher. I tried using it with Nova launcher, and it worked just fine. It detected Nova backup and created folders and icons to match my tastes. Or, you can customize it differently by tapping the paint icon. Our readers with a keen eye must have noticed Tasker integration. That opens up unlimited potential in my opinion. Download CAF
8. Mmm Fingers
Keeping up with cutting-edge technology requires us to be sharp and alert at all times. And between our tedious schedule, we often take a break to have some fun. That is why some of us like playing Mmm Fingers. A casual game that will keep you sharp, or you can lose your fingers. Mmm Fingers, unusual name, requires you to press and hold your finger at all times on the screen while trying to protect it from anything that has a set of razor-sharp teeth. It is fun to play and ends quickly, so you don’t end up spending too much time on it. Download Mmm Fingers
GT Staff’s Favorite Android Apps
These are some of the most common and widely used apps by the GT staff members. Of course, this is not an exhaustive list for including all of them is outside the scope of this guide. Let us know which apps do you swear by and can’t live without. Next up: Want to be productive when using the Chrome browser? Click on the link below to check out 10 productive Chrome add-ons. The above article may contain affiliate links which help support Guiding Tech. However, it does not affect our editorial integrity. The content remains unbiased and authentic.
