Phones are fun and all, but they can also be great tools for work and keeping your life in order. If you want to make your smartphone just that little bit more useful, we've picked out some of our favourite apps for kicking some #goals.
Trello
Trello is a top notch project management app that can work as a multi-faceted to-do list for yourself, or for an entire team.
Notably, you're able to get pretty granular when it comes to tasks; individual items can have their own to-do lists associated with them, which makes it easy to break up complex tasks.
We use Trello to keep WhistleOut running, so there was no way it wasn't going to end up on this list.
OneNote
Available on: iPhone, Android, Desktop
OneNote is Microsoft's free take on a note-taking app.
It's fully featured, available for almost every operating system under the sun, allows collaboration, and reliable syncs your content between every device you have OneNote installed on.
OneNote is another one of the apps we use to keep WhistleOut ticking.
Streaks
Available on: iPhone
Streaks is a to-do list with a twist. Pick up to six tasks you want to turn into daily habits - for example, reading for half an hour, practicing French, or walking the dog - and Streaks will keep track of that, and tell you how many times in a row you've avoided breaking your chain.
It's not a revolutionary idea, but it's a neat way to guilt yourself into getting things done.
Genius Scan
Genius Scan essentially turns your smartphone into a portable scanner.
Sure, you could just use your camera app, but Genius Scan has a couple of extra features; you're able to crop images and combine multiple photos into a multipage PDF.
Pushbullet
Available on: iPhone, Android, Desktop
Pushbullet is an app that connects your devices to make them "act like one". For example, you can use Pushbullet to get your phone's notifications on your computer, or to copy links from your desktop to your tablet.
If you've got too many devices, Pushbullet is a great way to keep them in sync.
1Password
Available on: iPhone, Android, Desktop
1Password is one of the best password managers currently available. If you're not familiar with the concept of a password manager, they essentially allow you to create complex, unique passwords for all of your online services, which are then locked in your "vault" behind a master password.
1Password is available as an outright purchase, or as a monthly subscription which includes cross-device sync. If you buy outright, you can still sync devices through the use of a service like Dropbox or iCloud. Family subscriptions are also available, which let you share select passwords with others.
Headspace
It can be hard to be productive if you're not in the right frame of mind.
Headspace is a guided meditation and mindfulness app, and it might just help you chill out a little and approach your work with a bit more focus.
You get ten guided medication sessions for free when you download the app, but after you finish, you'll need to subscribe for more content. Most meditations come in themed packs, dealing with subjects including anxiety, creativity, and self-esteem.
Pocketbook
Pocketbook is one of the friendliest budgeting apps around, and is a simple way you can manage your spending.
Notably, you can sync Pocketbook with your bank account (it's compatible with all of Australia's major banks), so you're able to get real time data on your finances, and save yourself a bunch of time inputing data.
Unroll.me
Available on: iPhone, Android, Web
Sick of getting about a million emails each day from from mailing lists you can't remember subscribing too?
Unroll.me is a service that helps you cancel all of those pesky subscriptions in one fell swoop, which is great for all of us who are too lazy to hit "unsubscribe" on every single email that comes through.
And if you actually like your daily dose of newsletters, Unroll.me has iOS and Android apps that groups up all of your subscription emails into a swipeable digest to make them just a little bit more manageable.
IFTTT
Available on: iPhone, Android, Web
Short for "if this then that", IFTTT is a web service that helps you automate simple tasks to save time. For example, if you change your profile picture on Facebook, IFTTT will propagate the change to your other social networks. Or if you upload a new photo to Instagram, IFTTT can automatically save it to Dropbox.
There's plenty of premade IFTTT "recipes" to experiment with, or if you're feeling adventurous, you can build your own.
Splitwise
Splitwise is a simple app that makes it easy to keep track of who owes you what. With what being money, obviously.
The app takes the math out of working out how to split bills, whether it's rent or the bar tab at the end of the night.
Rihanna would love it.
Alex Choros
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