Tech review: Must-have apps for your new iPhone
If you recently unwrapped a new iPhone, you have a bounty of Apple’s own apps preloaded and ready to go. But while these stock apps are useful, you can find even better ones on the Apple App Store. Here are four excellent stock replacement apps for your new iPhone.
Google Drive
(iOS, Android; free)
An app for an iPhone with the name “Google” in it? Yes! New iPhones come with 5 gigabytes of free storage on Apple’s iCloud cloud-storage service. But Google Drive offers 15GB of free storage – and its power, versatility and wide acceptance make it better than iCloud. You can still use both services, but while iCloud is a good place to store your photos, Google Drive is better for documents and work-related files.
Microsoft Outlook
(iOS, Android; free)
An app for an iPhone with the name “Microsoft” in it? Yes! The stock iOS Mail app is fine for most emailing chores, but power users with several personal, school and work accounts will find this mobile version of the popular Outlook desktop app a better choice. There are limitations on which email clients Outlook works with, but users of Microsoft Exchange, Office 365, Gmail and Yahoo Mail can connect quickly and seamlessly.
Venmo
(iOS, Android; free)
With the power and muscle of Apple behind it, Apple Pay is gaining traction as a payments app, especially one to use to tap-and-pay at smart registers in stores. But Venmo, from internet financial giant PayPal, has gained wide acceptance as a person-to-person payments app across all computer operating systems. It is the app of choice for millennials, who have made Venmo a verb ("I'll venmo you the money.")
Fantastical 2
(iOS; $4.99)
Apple’s Calendar app is useful, but it is kind of bland. If you have a shiny new iPhone, why not have a shiny new calendar app? In addition to being a full-purpose calendar, Fantastical 2 does a great job keeping track of events and reminders. It offers more views than Apple’s Calendar, and its “natural language parsing” makes it easy to schedule events or set reminders.
Streams now a deluge
The past decade saw a shift in how we listen to music. In 2010, CDs, vinyl records and digital downloads were 90 percent of the U.S. music market, with streaming holding a 7 percent share, according to the Recording Industry Association of America. By the end of 2019, streaming had captured 80 percent of the music market. Paid music streaming subscriptions rose from 1.5 million in 2010 to 611 million in 2019.
— PETER KING
‘Smart’ vehicles: Not smart enough
A first-of-its-kind study applying criminal justice theory to smart vehicles found some frightening results. Michigan State University researchers said not only are internet-connected cars susceptible to traditional cyberattacks, but connecting your smartphone through a USB port “can give a hacker backdoor access” where they could cause mayhem by breaching systems such as emergency braking. Researchers noted “there’s no one technically responsible for these vehicles’ central computer systems.”
— PETER KING
Dell PCs add iPhone features
Dell is trying to make its laptops more attractive to iPhone users. The third-largest PC maker said it is releasing software that will let users mirror their iPhone’s screen on Dell’s Windows-based laptops. The feature will also let Dell users drag photos, videos and other files from their iPhone to their PC. Dell sees the software as a way to get more people to buy its products.
— BLOOMBERG NEWS
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