App Focus: Best Apps Mar '16 Edition
Some of the most interesting apps I encountered in the last one month...
Apple Notes (iOS only) - When I switched from Android to iOS last September, finding a simple but effective Google Keep-like notes app seemed next to impossible. As plausible as pausing the flow of time. But you can imagine my visible surprise when I decided to give Apple Notes app a try a second time after my previous not-so-great experience an year back. Now not only can I access all my notes on the web (on iCloud of course), the newly enhanced features (that debuted with iOS 9), in addition to allowing you to track flights, attach any kind of files, and look up addresses on Apple Maps, have made it feature-complete and almost impossible to switch back to Google Keep.
Serial Reader (iOS only) - Want to catch up on classic literature, but don't have the time for it? Then Serial Reader is the perfect app, taking a bite-sized approach to letting you read them in installments that take up less than 20 minutes of your time.
Read (iOS only) - An elegant ePub reader for reading free public domain books; also lets you import books from Dropbox.
Grid (iOS only, paid) - Create endless collages that contain your ideas, ranging from notes to drawings to photos to animations, anything. Almost like a virtual pinboard.
Concepts (iOS only) - The ultimate professional design sketchbook you will ever want to have on your phone.
_PRISM (iOS only, paid) - A gorgeously designed geometric puzzler, and serious fun.
BuzzFeed Video (Android/iOS) - To be honest, who doesn't get trapped in the eternal clickhole that's BuzzFeed? BuzzFeed Video, a new app to showcase its video content, is just about addictive as well. And well-designed too!
Hound (Android/iOS) - SoundHound's personal voice assistant Hound is so bloody impressive, it will put Google Now to shame. Some amazing, crazy-fast natural language processing there I must admit. But it's also a shame it can't be set as the default on iOS!
Wikipedia (Android/iOS) - Popular Wikipedia-based apps such as Inquire and Viki (now rebranded as V for Wikipedia) surface relevant Wikipedia articles based your current location. Like for example, if you are on the 42nd Street in New York City, show Times Square as a relevant search result. But this handy feature has now made its way to the official Wikipedia app too, as part of a major redesign that went live last week?
Ulysses (iOS only, paid) - Popular writing app for iPad and Mac Ulysses recently landed on the iPhone, and I must say, I am tempted to buy it. While most of the rough drafts of all the writing I do for this blog are in Apple Notes, mainly because of its clean, distraction-free interface, Ulysses does sound like an appealing option. For an in-depth walkthrough, I recommend you read David Charter's piece in MacStories.
Nom (iOS only) - From YouTube co-founder comes a new live video-streaming app that exclusively caters to food lovers. Called Nom, the service aims to be that one ambitious place where you can watch, interact and host your own cookery shows. Interesting concept aside, the inevitable question is when is YouTube planning to acquire it?
Apple Notes (iOS only) - When I switched from Android to iOS last September, finding a simple but effective Google Keep-like notes app seemed next to impossible. As plausible as pausing the flow of time. But you can imagine my visible surprise when I decided to give Apple Notes app a try a second time after my previous not-so-great experience an year back. Now not only can I access all my notes on the web (on iCloud of course), the newly enhanced features (that debuted with iOS 9), in addition to allowing you to track flights, attach any kind of files, and look up addresses on Apple Maps, have made it feature-complete and almost impossible to switch back to Google Keep.
Serial Reader (iOS only) - Want to catch up on classic literature, but don't have the time for it? Then Serial Reader is the perfect app, taking a bite-sized approach to letting you read them in installments that take up less than 20 minutes of your time.
Read (iOS only) - An elegant ePub reader for reading free public domain books; also lets you import books from Dropbox.
Grid (iOS only, paid) - Create endless collages that contain your ideas, ranging from notes to drawings to photos to animations, anything. Almost like a virtual pinboard.
Concepts (iOS only) - The ultimate professional design sketchbook you will ever want to have on your phone.
_PRISM (iOS only, paid) - A gorgeously designed geometric puzzler, and serious fun.
BuzzFeed Video (Android/iOS) - To be honest, who doesn't get trapped in the eternal clickhole that's BuzzFeed? BuzzFeed Video, a new app to showcase its video content, is just about addictive as well. And well-designed too!
Hound (Android/iOS) - SoundHound's personal voice assistant Hound is so bloody impressive, it will put Google Now to shame. Some amazing, crazy-fast natural language processing there I must admit. But it's also a shame it can't be set as the default on iOS!
Wikipedia (Android/iOS) - Popular Wikipedia-based apps such as Inquire and Viki (now rebranded as V for Wikipedia) surface relevant Wikipedia articles based your current location. Like for example, if you are on the 42nd Street in New York City, show Times Square as a relevant search result. But this handy feature has now made its way to the official Wikipedia app too, as part of a major redesign that went live last week?
Ulysses (iOS only, paid) - Popular writing app for iPad and Mac Ulysses recently landed on the iPhone, and I must say, I am tempted to buy it. While most of the rough drafts of all the writing I do for this blog are in Apple Notes, mainly because of its clean, distraction-free interface, Ulysses does sound like an appealing option. For an in-depth walkthrough, I recommend you read David Charter's piece in MacStories.
Nom (iOS only) - From YouTube co-founder comes a new live video-streaming app that exclusively caters to food lovers. Called Nom, the service aims to be that one ambitious place where you can watch, interact and host your own cookery shows. Interesting concept aside, the inevitable question is when is YouTube planning to acquire it?
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