5 Must-DL Apps of the Week: Save Money, Replace Your Emoji + More
What an exciting week in tech — there’s a gold iPad to geek out over, the Apple Watch is looking fancy on the cover of Vogue and there are even more Halloween-y ways to bring emoji to life. On this week’s episode of What’s App-ening, we’re all about the Benjamins, the bonding, the STEAM and the sharing with five new apps you gotta DL… now.
1. Bond: We may have every form of communication at our fingertips at all times, but it doesn’t mean we use them. If you need a nudge to call Grandma, text your boo or FB message your pregnant friend in Alaska (yes, these are all personal push notifications I absolutely need) this app will do it. Go through your contacts and select those you want to keep in touch with better and choose the ways you want to do it. From there, you’ll get regular notifications that you can swipe open and access easily. A simple DL and you’re already on the way to being a better friend/granddaughter/BF/GF.
2. GoldieBlox: This company is changing the game of toys geared toward girls, with playthings that encourage building, coding and creating the next generation of female engineers. Now GoldieBlox is going from STEM to STEAM with a new movie-making iOS app. Learn the fundamentals of animation by drawing, coloring and sticker-ing your own digital shorts in this app that you might just need to borrow from your daughter/sister/babysittee now and then.
Cost: Free for iOS
3. Pennies: Remember ye olde piggy bank? It’s coming back in app form with your financial health in mind. This smart money tracker lets you set daily, monthly or random targets (think: how much I’m allowed to spend on food this week, on going out this weekend and on that trip at the end of the month) and see how hitting or missing these goals will affect your next day or a future vacay. It may not be the first personal finance app you download, but it just might be the sleekest.
Cost: $1.99 for iOS
4. Skype Qik: There are roughly 1,000 apps that allow you to message GIFs, videos and stickers galore — even iOS 8 lets you send video and audio in place of your old friend, the text. Skype’s getting in the game with a new download called Qik, which lets you send and receive short videos with individual contacts or groups of friends. It’ll even let you save up to 12 quicky videos to replace your emoji response with your own bespoke smiley. Deja vu? Sure. Pretty cool? Also, sure.
Cost: Free for Android, iOS and Windows Phone
5. Xim: This app is a bit of a jaw-dropper. Insert Stefon voice: You know that thing when you take a picture on your phone and your friends are all, like, “Let me see that picture!” and you all crowd around a phone? This is the answer to that. It’s bringing back “the bump” by letting you simply swipe to skim through pictures across multiple friends’ screens.
Cost: Free for Android, iOS and Windows Phone
Bonus: ICYMI Apps
– GiftyOne: This app learns your naughty/nice list to help you figure out what to get them. Whoa.
– Mailburn: Turn your email into AOL Instant Messenger.
– Manual: Go pro with your smartphone camera with this transformative app.
What was your favorite app download of the week? Share it with your friends (us, duh) below!