4 great apps for iPhone in 2020

A review by Glen Lowe

Apps are what set iPhones apart, and the hundreds of apps have uses ranging from maps, reading, weather forecasts, photos, drawing, videos, office tasks, music, or entertainment. There are always new apps coming up, and while many of them are free, others you have to pay for. 

The paid apps often work much better than the free ones, and most often, the paid version is an upgrade of the free version with more features unlocked. If you don’t have an iPhone, or you are planning to buy one, it is worth your while to check out the many apps iPhone has to offer. 

Here are four of my favourite apps in 2020:

1. Moodistory Mood Tracker
   This tracker costs $4.99 and is a journal that tracks your mood. The tracker’s idea is to track your feelings and show you how your mood changes. The app is low friction, low-effort, and does not stress you by adding to what you already have on your mind. If you want to, you can rate the current mood and nothing more. If you wish to add any notes and give your mood context, the app has a journaling option.
   Over a period, your daily input builds a grid-like calendar that is colour-coded, with graphs that show your mood distribution on an average week. If the app shows you are most unhappy on certain days, you can perhaps check and see what you can change about that day.

2. Inkwork
   Inkwork costs $2.99 and is an app that is designed for transforming photos into sketches. Apps that change photos into sketches are a dime a dozen, but this app catches the eye differently and uniquely. Inwork’s interface is smooth, sleek, and you can quickly switch ink colours and the background. You can also change the stroke size, making the sketch more abstract or detailed, depending on your choice.
   However, the filters keep you busy because there are very many and can even overwhelm you. If you like black and white art, you have everything from stylised comic-book fare to scratchy pen hatching. You can instantly select with no need for the internet, but Redditors still recommend to use VPN, just to stay safe from cyber criminals.

3. Television Time
   Television Time is an entertainment app that allows you to track any television show you would like to watch, wherever they are airing. You start by outlining which shows you watch and if you have already started watching a series, you indicate your most recent episode watched. The Shows tab alerts you when conventional broadcasts are airing, and the To Watch tab shows how many more episodes you have to watch.
   There are free apps for the same purpose, but they do not and cannot match Television Time’s smart design, polish, and useful features, including show calendars (US) and iCloud sync.

4. Streaks Workout
   Streaks workout will set you back some $3.99, and is an exercise app that combines depth and immediacy. To start a workout, tap on time. The app then formulates for you a routine, giving you orders as the workout exercises change. Your options vary between a relatively straightforward exercise that is six-minutes long or Quick, and the almost impossible half an hour “Extreme.’
   When you can get the time to plan your workout, you have many extra options. You can toggle certain routines on and off, or you can add yours, stating the length of a rep and whether you should time it or count it. You can also customize a whole routine. As you continue using the app, it logs your history as well as streaks. The app can link to Apple Health and set your goals on a week-to-week basis. It tracks your streaks across different i-devices such as iPads or Apple TV.

Conclusion

iPhones boast of hundreds of apps across different interests. It is up to you to peruse the apps and decide which ones you need, because frankly, sometimes we download apps that we never use. Some apps are free, and others are charged. Whichever the case may be, you are still spoilt for choice as far as apps for iPhones are concerned.

Installation of paid apps is sometimes an upgrade of a free one. The beauty of iPhone apps is their security. The App store has strict app verification unlike the Android play store, which allows apps in without strict checks. That is how users end up downloading bugs and apps that slow phones down.. Only download what you need.