My Favorite 59 Mobile Apps

8/20/2014

This is an updated listing of the Apps that I use continually and that you might find useful. I have re-categorized the list and updated it. My favorites in each group are BLUE. New additions to the list are in BOLD. Less frequently used apps are in ITALICS.

All of these are Apple Apps. (Sorry, I haven't checked to see if they are available for Android, but probably.) Most are free. Many of the paid apps are offered free periodically through an app called AppsGoneFree! Since they are easy to look up, I haven't linked the apps to iTunes. However, if I have written about them, I have included that link.

If you have apps you love, mention them in the comments below so we can all check them out.

I find that these apps make it easy to work wherever the mood strikes me.

10 Photo-related Apps:
From selfies to 'art' to creating graphics for my blog my iPhone camera plays a large role, and I use a lot of apps to do the tweaking.

Genius Scan - turns your iPad or iPhone into a scanner, allows you to square up an image like a foreshortened elevation! five-handy-photo-apps
Snapseed - if you want to enhance a photo, the tools here are amazing
Big Photo - my new go-to tool for sizing an image, up or down
Color Splash - turns a photo into black and white and then lets you recover just the color you want for a special effect
PicShop - the name similarity to PhotoShop by Adobe is no accident, very similar capabilities
iPhone Photosynth - take a series of photos that are stitched together where they overlap [Included in the link for Genius Scan above.]
StillShot - lets you select individual frames from a video [Included in the link for Genius Scan above.]
PhotoStation - crops any shape out of a photo
PhotoInWord - select a background, create text, add photo; the text acts like a window onto the photo [Included in the link for Genius Scan above.]
Photos Slice HD - slices up a photo for special effects, adds FX

7 Graphics-related Apps:
Once you have the photo, things are just getting started - or often I am creating an image from scratch. These are what I use to make the magic.

TitleFX - adds your choice of text in a variety of fonts, colors and sizes. Still my go-to app for titles. [See the link for Genius Scan above.]
Strip Design - I use this to assemble an image and text into a single unit. Intended use is cartoon strips.
Skitch - Evernote's notation tool is handy for adding arrows, labels, circles, etc. to photos, images or PDFs.
Lucidchart - the app isn't as good as the browser version, but it works pretty well, and all your work is available on any device.
Canva - this graphic tool isn't that great on a mobile device, but the browser version is very easy to use
Pointillist - converts a photo into a pointillist version
Nostaglio - assembles selected photos into your choice of grid

3 Math-related Apps:
What would life be without a little data to collect and manipulate?

Scalar calculator - calculator entries are listed on a document that you can annotate and save. See The Best Calculator
Numbers - Apple's spreadsheet app designed to give you great looking results
Drive Sheets - when I'm in the Google-verse, this is really handy and has Add-Ons that do things like a mail merge. Lots to like with Sheets in Google Drive.

4 Writing-related Apps:
Everybody texts and emails every day, but when I need to document an idea as a note or an article here is where I go for the tools I need.

IA Writer - a text word processor that helps you focus on just your writing; format later
Evernote - cloud database for holding everything and tagging it so you can find it again in the future; the uses are endless. See The One App You Really Ought To Use
Pages - Apple's word processor designed to give you great looking results
Drive Docs - I love that there is a simple, full word processor that makes Word unnecessary. I don't do 'Microsoft'.

4 Planning-related Apps:
Sometimes I just need a way to arrange and rearrange my thoughts or work out a plan or process.

Stickyboard2 - my go-to tool for posting ideas and rearranging them into something that makes sense. See My Favorite Sticky-Note Apps
Outliner - if you work with traditional outlines, this is a great choice. Browser or device-based, files are in the cloud and sharable. See An Outlining App That Is A Joy To Use
BugMe! - mimics sticky notes and adds an alarm; great for all the things you use sticky notes for [See link for Stickyboard2 above]
lino - electronic tack board for posting up notes, photos, etc.; great for documenting the pieces of a problem and arranging them into a solution [See link for Stickyboard2 above]

4 Project Management-related Apps:
Keeping my goals and projects and tasks up to date and in front of me is a daily activity, and here are the tools that make it happen.

Nozbe and Basecamp - see my comparison; both are great project management tools
Basecamp Personal - new version of Basecamp for a single project for a single payment of $25. See How to Hack Basecamp Personal
Trello - in the same class as Nozbe and Basecamp, but different. I use all three. Trello is my meta-task list that keeps me in touch with my goals. See You Probably Need Trello

4 Reference (Storage) Apps:
Have you noticed there is a lot of stuff you need to save for reference or safe-keeping? These four do a great job for me.

Dropbox - cloud file storage accessible from anywhere
Evernote - cloud database for holding everything and tagging it so you can find it again in the future; the uses are endless (listed twice). See Evernote
Google Drive - used to be Google Documents, improved and accessible from anywhere
Pocket - I'm the last person to discover Pocket. It takes the 'read later' concept to its logical conclusion by letting you save stuff no matter where you find it - and tag it so you can find it without wading through everything.

7 Online Management Apps:
If you have a website and a Twitter account, then you are going to want some help making the management of them less of a black hole for your time.

Weebly - create your own websites, this one was created with Weebly
AdSense - once I noticed that Google had an app for monitoring your ads, the search was over
SimplyStats - pulls all the Google Analytics into clean, easy reports
Buffer - social media manager that let's you schedule your posts by adding them to a queue. For me it cuts out 2/3 of the time that this used to take. Really easy to re-post others' posts or access the feeds of your favorite bloggers. See Comparison of Buffer and Hootesuite
Daily - a companion app for Buffer that makes finding your kind of information a breeze.
Hootsuite - social media manager that can view, post, analyze. [Included in link above for Buffer]
Fishead Analytics - an app for viewing Google Analytics

6 Freehand Writing/Drawing Apps:
One of the things that tablets are great for is the touch screen which allows freehand input by hand-lettering, cursive writing, or drawing.

Inkflow - write or draw with your finger, zooming adds tons of control, import images normally or as editable 'ink'. Lot's of uses. See Comparison of Inkflow and Notability
Trace - sketch on yellow trace, add overlays, mimics the real thing pretty well
Paper - very nice freehand drawing app
Sketch Time - similar to Paper but with more of a graphic art feel
Penultimate - create notebooks and write in them with your finger; import photos for commenting, take notes in a meeting, brainstorm, export as PDF for storage or distribution, synchs with Evernote
Notability - similar to Inkflow, but oriented a bit more to writing and text. [Included in link above for Inkflow]

12 Miscellaneous Apps:
These apps don't have anything in common with the other categories but play important roles nevertheless.

Mercury and Chrome - additional browsers - I always have too many tabs open to easily manage them in one browser. So add more browser.
Epson iPrint - this app is your wireless connection to your printer-scanner-copier; a joy to use (HP take note)
1Password - a password storage vault. Described My Use Here
AutoCAD 360 (was AutoCAD WS) - view, edit and annotate AutoCAD drawing files. 360 is somewhat improved, but the main change is Autodesk monetizing it.
Line2 - our VOIP phone company; $15/line/month, by Toktumi
Web to PDF - turn whatever you find on the web into a PDF
My Measures PRO - add dimensions to a photo, great for site investigations and measurements. See recent description
RL Classic - QR code scanner and creator
Grid - a spreadsheet app (in Beta) for all kinds of information
Prezi - an alternative to PowerPoint
Join.Me - for those web meetings

So there you have it, 59 of my best friends. Actually, a couple extra snuck onto the list {can't count}; but '59' makes a better graphic than '61'. Do you see how artistic license works? I hope you have found a new tool or two. And don't forget to share your favorites in the comments.