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5 Apps You Just Can’t Miss This Week

3 minute read

It seems like hundreds of new iPhone apps pop up every week, but which ones should you bother trying? We explored the App Store and found five apps actually worth downloading.

Evernote Scannable

Over the last few years, Evernote has become one of the most popular note-taking apps available. It combines the need for quick, on-the-go note-taking with cloud storage, never sacrificing the option for more in-depth composition.

Now, Evernote has introduced Scannable, which allows you to scan documents, receipts, or all other manners of paper, save them, and then share them with your contacts. That needlessly tall tower of papers and receipts on your desk waiting to be sorted for April 1st? Yeah, no more of that.

Evernote Scannable is free in the App Store.

CommitTo3

Many productivity apps expect far more than we can reasonably deliver. Yes, for some it is indeed great to have all of a day’s tasks outlined and color-coded in a single app, but for others, this level of scheduling seems overzealous and daunting.

CommitTo3 is an app that allows you to set three reasonable goals for the day, then tracks your completion/success rate. It’s an easy way to gain momentum. Think of it as the Couch-to-5k of productivity apps.

CommitTo3 is free in the App Store.

Water Tracker

When I get a little ornery, I have a friend who will condescendingly ask me: “Are you dehydrated?” The answer is, almost always, yes. We keep hearing about eight glasses a day, or ounces-to-body-weight ratios, but we’re all almost always in a constant state of dehydration.

Water Tracker is the app we all need on our phones. It tells users how much water they should consume in a day and then holds them to that number. It also has input settings for other beverages, so you can finally see that your coffee-to-water intake ratio is medically irresponsible. 4 p.m. headaches, frustration and physical discomfort can all be curbed if we obey Water Tracker.

Water Tracker is available for $1.99 in the App Store.

The 15 Most Bizarre Moments From the Consumer Electronics Show

A brand ambassador tests Samsung's Gear VR headset at the Samsung Galaxy booth at the International CES on Jan. 6, 2015, in Las Vegas.
A brand ambassador tests Samsung's Gear VR headset at the Samsung Galaxy booth on Jan. 6, 2015.Jae C. Hong—AP
Frank Lee, Brand Marketing for LG Electronics MobileComm USA, demonstrates the enhanced selfie feature on the new LG G Flex 2 mobile phone on press day for the 2015 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas on Jan. 5, 2015.
Frank Lee, Brand Marketing for LG Electronics MobileComm USA, demonstrates the enhanced selfie feature on the new LG G Flex 2 mobile phone on Jan. 5, 2015. Michael Nelson—EPA
Attendees lay on Serta mattresses at the Serta stand on Jan. 6, 2015 at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
Attendees lay on Serta mattresses at the Serta stand on Jan. 6, 2015.Robyn Beck—AFP/Getty Images
Joe Clayton, CEO of Dish, arrives on stage banging a bass drum followed by company mascots during the Dish news conference at the International Consumer Electronics show (CES) in Las Vegas on Jan. 5, 2015.
Joe Clayton, CEO of Dish, arrives on stage banging a bass drum followed by company mascots during the Dish news conference on Jan. 5, 2015. Rick Wilking—Reuters
A transparent TRW model car is seen during the 2015 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas on Jan. 6, 2015.
A transparent TRW model car is seen on Jan. 6, 2015. Yang Lei—Xinhua Press/Corbis
At the 'Unveiled-event' a young woman has a look at salad at the CES electronics and consumer technology tradeshow in Las Vegas on Jan. 4, 2015.
At the 'Unveiled-event' a young woman has a look at salad on Jan. 4, 2015. Britta Pedersen—dpa/Corbis
The drone'Nano' from 'Zano' on Jan. 8, 2015.
The drone 'Nano' from 'Zano' on Jan. 8, 2015. Britta Pedersen—dpa/Corbis
Attendees interact with wity screens that run on Intel's Realsense technology on Jan. 6, 2015.
Attendees interact with wity screens that run on Intel's Realsense technology on Jan. 6, 2015.Michael Nelson—EPA
An attendee wears Altspace Virtual Reality head ware on Jan. 6, 2014.
An attendee wears Altspace Virtual Reality head ware on Jan. 6, 2014.Michael Nelson—EPA
Sony Electronics President and COO Mike Fasulo displays the Sony 4K Action Cam at a press event on Jan. 5, 2015.
Sony Electronics President and COO Mike Fasulo displays the Sony 4K Action Cam at a press event on Jan. 5, 2015.David Becker—Getty Images
Consumer Electronics Association President and CEO Gary Shapiro exits a Mercedes-Benz F 015 autonomous driving automobile after it was unveiled at a Mercedes-Benz press event on Jan. 5, 2015.
Consumer Electronics Association President and CEO Gary Shapiro exits a Mercedes-Benz F 015 autonomous driving automobile after it was unveiled at a Mercedes-Benz press event on Jan. 5, 2015.David Becker—Getty Images
A display shows Panasonic's virtual make-up mirror at a Panasonic news conference on Jan. 5 , 2015.
A display shows Panasonic's virtual make-up mirror at a Panasonic news conference on Jan. 5 , 2015.Steve Marcus—Reuters
Selfie sticks of the company 'Noosy' displayed on Jan. 8, 2015.
Selfie sticks of the company 'Noosy' displayed on Jan. 8, 2015.Britta Pedersen—EPA
World freediving champion Stig Severinsen holds his breathe underwater for a total of 5 minutes, 35 secs to demonstrate the functionality and accuracy of the Masimo SET pulse oximetry device on Jan. 8, 2015.
World freediving champion Stig Severinsen holds his breathe underwater for a total of 5 minutes, 35 secs to demonstrate the functionality and accuracy of the Masimo SET pulse oximetry device on Jan. 8, 2015.Robyn Beck—AFP/Getty Images
Workers install an advertisement for a new S'UHD TV from Samsung Electronics on the side of the Las Vegas Convention Center on Jan. 4, 2015.
Workers install an advertisement for a new S'UHD TV from Samsung Electronics on the side of the Las Vegas Convention Center on Jan. 4, 2015.Steve Marcus—Reuters

Player

For musicians and amateurs, Player is an incredibly useful tool. For the rest of us, it’s one of the most fascinating digital experiments around. The app takes songs from your library and then analyzes them, breaking them down by chords for piano or guitar while also revealing other relevant information. It’s a way of learning to play songs, or simply developing a far more intimate relationship with your music collection.

Player is free in the App Store.

iGreet

iGreet is an amazing app perhaps more for what it represents than the purpose it actually serves. It allows users to create customizable greeting cards that can then be printed out at a nearby Walgreens. The card is then scanned by the recipient, revealing secondary “augmented reality” content.

True, it’s a way of jazzing up boring greeting cards and making birthday cards that much more affectionate, but it also evidence that our phones are the key to getting a lot more out of even the most mundane aspects of non-digital life.

iGreet is free in the App Store.

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