11 Things You Should Be Using Your Phone For

When you’re out and about, having your smart phone with you provides more than just a lifeline if you get stuck. Most of us wouldn’t leave home without it. Whether you keep yours tucked in a pocket, stowed in your handbag, or permanently in your hand, we have a need to be close to our phones. There are more ways than ever to use your phone in your everyday life.

We’ve listed the 11 most essential tasks your phone could be helping you with:

1. Making a phone call

The obvious one. However, we are making fewer phone calls these days. Instead, when we have time to sit and chat we’ll use a video call like FaceTime or Skype. And when we are talking on the phone, we’re usually using earbuds rather than holding the phone to our ear. Times have changed. We want to chat, but we don’t want to have to stop to do it. We’re always on the go!

2. Telling the time

If you’re a clock watcher, chances are you’re using your phone to do it. Whether you wear a watch or not, most of us check our home screen to see what the time is. The Apple Watch is attempting to change all that. It doesn’t matter if you are with your phone or not. The Watch will tell you the time, date, battery power, and any other information you choose to see on the home screen. For those not keen on Apple’s Watch styling, the humble smartphone remains our main time teller.

3. Keeping fit

What smart phone would be complete with a handful of fitness apps running? You can input your exercise and activity manually, or let the phone sense when you’re running. The GPS can even track how far you’ve walked or run. Best of all, you can do all your exercise to the music you have stored on your phone. There are even apps with videos that show you the exercises to do while you work out. Pop in what you’ve eaten by scanning bar codes and you’ll get a readout at the end of the day telling you how good you’ve been.

4. Shopping

We all love to shop and more of us are choosing to shop online. The best thing about a smart phone is the internet access. Major retail stores provide you with the apps to shop for bargains at your leisure twenty-four hours a day. You can even use it to compare prices when you’re in store. With just a few touches of your phone screen, you can order an entirely new wardrobe to be delivered tomorrow. Why not order a pizza delivery to celebrate?

5. Cooking

If you love to spend time in the kitchen, you may be using your smart phone to access yummy recipes. Most of us prefer to follow a method with ingredients rather than experimenting wildly in the kitchen. This is where your phone comes in. You can search for any recipe from any culture in the world. Just prop your phone up on the counter-top and away you go. There are also some handy apps with thousands of recipes built right in. You can even get cocktail recipes!

6. Work

You can now perform many office tasks from your phone handset. This means you have the freedom to work from anywhere in the world. Word processing and spreadsheet apps can be downloaded onto any mobile device. This can allow you to view and even edit your work documents.

It’s also very easy to set up email accounts on your handset. Of course, all this means you can be contacted by work twenty-four hours a day. But to quickly fix something after you’ve left the office, it can be ideal. And thank goodness for the calculator!

7. Catching up

The smart phone is ideal for checking Tweets, Facebook posts, and even the latest news. Social media seems to have been created for the phone. It means you are always contactable, and you can always find those five minutes to check in: breaks at work, while enjoying your morning coffee, or right before bed.

YouTube apps mean you can even watch or upload videos for friends to see. You can also catch up with your favorite TV shows from your mobile devices. 

8. Route Finder

The GPS in your smart phone is so good you can use it as a satellite navigation device. Even handier is the maps feature. You can zoom in to see satellite images of the places you are going to. There is even a street view! You’ll never be lost again with your trusty smart phone in your hand. You can choose to have just onscreen prompts to help you turn down the right street. Or you might prefer the built-in voice prompts to tell you exactly where to go.

9. Travel News

For those of you using the trains and buses, the travel news and route maps are essential. You can see where the delays are and even plan alternative routes. If you’re heading to a new city, having the stats on what’s happening on the road is handy too.

There are a ton of different options out there — but Waze and Google Maps are the most popular.  If you’re stuck in a jam, you can ask the app to find you alternative routes.

You could also get your morning commute status texted to you via an app called Poncho (weather report included).

10. Looking good

Let’s face it. Your phone is an essential accessory and should be dressed up like one. Invest in a screen protector if you’re out and about a lot so you won’t suffer scratches and scuffs. You should also invest in a good quality and good-looking case.

You can buy cases for Samsung’s or an iPhone 6s case easily online to suit your tastes. Cases can become talking points. You can even personalize them to make them unique. Don’t underestimate the importance of your phone looking good. After all, it’s a big investment and an essential piece of kit.

11. Reading

If you rely on trains and buses to get from place to place, filling up your digital library is a great idea. Sure, you could always purchase a tablet meant for reading; but that’s just an extra thing to lug around. Most books purchased through the iBooks cost between $1-$3. There’s also a ton of free ones!

Our smart phones really are essential in every part of our lives. Statistics shows that smartphone is very essential in so many ways thus number of users worldwide are increasing.
They help us get about. They help us stay in touch. And they definitely look good in our hands! What’s your favorite app?