Most of us college students are completely attached to our phones. We rely on our smartphones for keeping in touch with friends or calling an Uber, and there’s an app on our phones for almost everything. As a college student, you’ve probably downloaded all the social media apps in existence, but there are still some apps that you might not have heard of. Here are seven useful apps that can be downloaded for free on your iPhone or Android.
1. Forest:
Do you find yourself constantly distracted by your phone while you’re trying to write a paper? Are you constantly interrupted by Facebook notifications or Twitter updates? Forest is a fun way to beat your phone addiction and stay focused on your work. Using the app, the longer you stay away from your phone, the more your forest of virtual trees will grow. And you also get little notifications about how much your tree has grown, which is motivating and makes it easier to stay focused. The app works on both iOS and Android.
2. Curiosity: If you are ever bored, looking to impress a date, or preparing for a game of trivia, this is the app for you! Each day, Curiosity sends you five short articles about science, world news, history, and pretty much any other topic you could imagine. It’s a quick and easy way to learn some fun facts while standing in the Freshii line or waiting for the Metro. With Curiosity, you’ll be ready to impress your friends with your science news, space facts, and art knowledge. You’ll also be one step closer to winning trivia night. The app is available on both iOS and Android.
3. Sunshine:
If you’re anything like me, your daily routine involves running out to your morning classes without glancing at the weather. But with this app, you’ll never be unprepared for rain or freezing weather again. Every morning, the Sunshine app sends you a personalized message about the weather for the day. You can adjust your preferences for what you think are “hot” or “cold” temperatures, and then the app will tell you how you’ll feel each day based on your choices. Available on iOS and Android.
4. Snapseed: This photo editing app is perfect for making your selfies look Instagram-worthy. Using Snapseed, you can edit your photos with tons of tools and filters. The app has normal adjustments similar to those on Instagram, like crop, white balance, or rotate. It also has a lot of filters, including unique ones like “noir” and “glamour glow.” So if you’re looking for a new filter for your profile picture, Snapseed has hundreds of options. Available on iOS and Android.
5. Coffitivity: On those days when the Dav runs out of seats, you can use this app for a coffeeshop vibe wherever you go. With Coffitivity, you can choose your level of background noise, with noise levels ranging from “morning murmur” to “university undertones.” If you’re the kind of person who can’t study without the sounds of a coffeemaker and people talking in the background, then this is the perfect study app for you. Available on iOS and Android.
6. Burner: If someone asks for your number but you don’t want to give it out, you can use Burner instead. Burner has a temporary fake number which you can give out to people you meet online, on a dating app, or anywhere else that you don’t feel comfortable giving out your real phone number. The “burner” number works just like a real phone number, but you can delete it whenever you want. Plus, switching to Burner means you can delete all those useless contacts like “Matt (Tinder)” from your phone. Availble for iOS and Android.
7. Colorfy: Between the midterms, long papers, and endless class readings, being a college student can be stressful. For when you want to relax and unwind in your free time, you can use Colorfy, a virtual coloring book. The app has hundreds of coloring sheets in various categories. There are coloring pages based on famous works of art, and even an entire category of cat coloring pages. If you don’t want to carry a real coloring book and pencils around campus, the Colorfy app is a great alternative that lets you color whenever you want. Available for iOS and Android.