Our mobile phones have become indispensable tools in our daily lives and so are the apps we run on it. You can hardly go anywhere these days without holding on to one of your mobile devices, be it a phone or a tablet. The applications we run on them makes the experience a richer one, be it apps for productivity, social networking, games or apps for catching up with all the latest news or for keeping up with the latest info in your favourite sports.
Here is just to share some of my favourite apps in 2012. The list is not exhaustive, it’s just the fun ones I enjoyed using. The apps mentioned here may only be available on iOS and Android platforms. While blackberry is a popular mobile device around here, the apps available are limited and the experience may not be as rich. Windows mobile platform is in the process of reenacting itself and does not come into much consideration here. The write-up is just for the fun of it and not an endorsement for any particular application. Already, i believe, much cooler apps are being developed at the moment which will rival or even overtake the ones listed here in the near future.
1. Twitter: my twitter app succeeded in displacing Facebook as my most favorite app of the year. For those who still don’t get, it’s a micro blogging site where you are limited to 140 characters per tweet, you can also embed media (picture, audio or video). Twitter makes it easy to connect with other users all over the world with whom you share certain interests, be it celebrities in music, sports or fashion, also political leaders, religious leaders, news services or just ordinary folks with whom you share a common interest.
Some of my top follows are @rickwarren (religion, author of purpose driven life), @tompeters (management ideas) @espnsoccernet (football news, scores), @chelseafc (my football club), @cnn,@bbc, @punchng, @premiumtimes, @thisday (news, local & foreign), @omojuwa (Nigerian buzz), @doubleph (general buzz), @rotexonline (my homey). Even though I don’t consider myself a heavy user, it has become a useful source of information, a very fast means of catching up with the latest buzz around the world.
2. Facebook: I won’t dwell too much on Facebook. This is where majority of my folks still reside and my Facebook app makes it to connect and interact with them.
3. You version Bible: The YouVersion bible app provides a clean and beautiful interface for studying the bible. It has lots of bible translations in several languages. It also provides access to loads of devotional study materials (I’m about completing a 365 days with Joyce Meyer devotional which I read through 2012). I can also write notes, colour, bookmark and share favourite verses. It has become so indispensable to me that I hardly open my physical bible these days. The only downside to it is you need to have a reliable Internet connection to get the best out of it, although it does have options for downloading some translation of the bible, making it accessible while offline. Some of the translations also have voice readers, so you can simply plug-in and listen to your favourite scripture on the go.
4. Whatsapp: Folks who use a BB may not understand why this is a favorite app, but I’ve never used one, so this happens to be my favorite instant messaging app for chatting with friends and family. Its greatest advantage is its cross-platform interoperability. I can easily chat with friends on android, iOS or blackberry, once they have it installed. I just need to have their phone numbers stored. I have heard some complain about it not being private enough; some prefer the restricted access that comes with having a pin on blackberry messenger.
5. Instagram: This is just a fun app to use for sharing photos about just anything. It has photo filtering options for adding special fun effects to your photos, giving it some professional touch. It was a favorite for me on my vacation trip this year, chronicling all my activities and the fun places I visited (and btw, it was just Abuja and not the Swiss Alps). There have been concerns lately on changes to its terms of use as regards user’s privacy.
6. Eurosport: I am an avid football follower, my Eurosport app makes it easy for me to stay in touch with all the latest events in football and other sports as well. Whenever I am unable to watch a live football event, I can keep abreast of happening by following its minute-by-minute updates. I can easily check for scores and read up an analysis of a missed match.
7. Real Football: This was my favorite game app in 2012. I enjoy playing the league matches and the international tourneys. In-app purchases was not supported for the Nigerian iTunes Store and this curtailed the fun a little, thankfully that helped to minimize my time on it.
8. Dictionary: A favorite app for quickly checking up the meaning of words especially when I come across a difficult word while reading an article or about to use a word and wanted to be sure of the correct usage, spelling or pronunciation. It requires an Internet connection for full functionality.
9. Temple Run: Another favorite game in 2012. I managed to hit 1.9m scores while running away from devil monkeys. It can become tiring though.
10. Evernote: I typed this article on Evernote. I’m only just beginning to explore its functionality lately but I think I’m enjoying it so far. I can type notes, take pictures and audio notes. I can also use it to warehouse stuff I download from the Internet. It stores all your stuff safely in the cloud and it can be accessible from any device you are logged on to.
So, that’s a wrap. You can also share with me your favorite apps in 2012 in the comment section. Have a blissful 2013.
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Kayode Olawale is a graduate of Accounting from the University of Ado-Ekiti. He resides in Lagos and writes in his spare time Follow @kayuzz
