Today’s iPhones are certainly impressive with powerful processors and high quality cameras. iPhones are more than just hardware though. The experience of having one is greatly enhanced by the apps that you can download. The following is a list of hidden gems; those apps that didn’t get a lot of attention but offer great utility or add interesting features to your iPhone experience.
Drafts 5 (Free): Agile Tortoise makes a great note-taking and writing app. Open the app and you get a blank page and keyboard at the ready. New entries are saved to an Inbox so you can tag and sort them later. The app also offers dozens of quick actions to turn your notes into documents, emails, messages or posts for social media.
1BlockerX ($4.99): Pricey as it may seem, 1Blocker was one of the first really good ad blockers for iOS. The app is designed to make browsing faster and more secure by block ads, pop-ups, and trackers. Instead of blocking content of a downloaded page, 1Blocker works with Safari’s content blocker to tell the browser what to block in advance, thus saving time and resources. It features more than 115,000 blocker rules and custom regional settings.
Libby (Free): Your local library already has a digital media lending system so why are you spending a ton of money on eBooks? Libby is the latest incarnation of Overdrive’s digital media management system, allowing users to borrow eBooks and audiobooks from participating libraries. You do need a library card to sign in to the app. Once that is done, search for titles, set holds, borrow and return books with a click of a button. You can stream borrowed books to your phone or tablet if you prefer to save space.
Tunity (Free): Having trouble hearing the TV at a noisy sports bar? Tunity is a great app that allows you to stream live TV audio straight to your headphones through your mobile device. Bring up your iPhone to scan the TV and Tunity will clearly stream the audio for you.
Skiplagged (Free): A travel app to save you money by taking advantage of “hidden city flights”. This is where flyers get off at a layover destination instead of the final destination. Enter your origin and target destination and the app will show the cost of a direct flight as well as cheaper “hidden city” flights that have your destination as a layover. You can also get last-minute deals on hotels.
Whether you’re picking up the latest iPhone or just want to add something to your current model, check out these overlooked iOS apps today.
