- [Mr. Mobile] You know how it goes.
You move into a new phone, you tend to download
the same apps you always have.
And judging from the comments,
a lot of you folks seem interested in the apps I use.
So for this edition of How Mr. Mobile Works,
I'm showing you my top 40.
(upbeat music)
Let's start by getting the obvious ones out of the way.
Most of you know that you can find me
on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat
when I'm not on YouTube,
and the links are always down in the description.
Next to that subscribe button, hint hint.
Like a lot of tech folks,
I run most of my personal and work life on Google products,
with all of my email going either through Gmail or Inbox,
my schedule on Google Calendar,
and text and calls handled by Google Voice.
Yep, that's a lot of data going to Mountain View.
And if you're weirded out by how deeply
Google has seeped into our digital lives,
I can't blame you one bit.
If I need to send an email or draft a script
outside of the Google ecosystem,
I use Microsoft Outlook and Word,
holdovers from my days on Windows Phone.
And even before those days,
I got hooked on using Evernote on my Palm Pre
for all the little memos that I take throughout the day.
I just realized I've been using the same
note taking app for seven years.
That's crazy.
I do a lot of walking, and when I do,
I keep my ears happy with three apps.
TuneIn can stream any radio station
that also broadcasts on the web.
WBR and WEARS are my local Boston favorites.
Spotify gives me all the music I can handle
for $10 a month.
When I'm writing or reading in Amazon Kindle,
that means instrumental music
from bands like Alphawezen or Ratatat.
For rainy days of introspection, I still love Pinback
and TV on the Radio.
And when I'm craving talk over tunes, Pocket Casts
is my go-to source for Star Trek podcasts,
tech shows, nonfiction, comedy,
and whatever Mobile Nations is kicking out this week.
Sometimes I listen to those in the background
while playing a game.
- Let's play Global Thermonuclear War.
- [Computer] Fine.
- [Mr. Mobile] In my reviews, you'll often see
graphics-heavy titles like Asphalt 8,
but my favorites tend to be a lot tamer.
Smash Hit and Sparkle 2 for mind-numbing,
the Room series for mind-stretching.
And, for a little thoughtful perspective,
indie titles like A Normal Lost Phone
and Opus: The Day We Found Earth.
To keep me moving, I play a lot of Ingress,
the Pokemon Go predecessor that takes me on
rambling tours around town.
And when I'm on a plane, I take my mind off turbulence
by playing Sky Gamblers: Air Supremacy.
The bumpier the real flight,
the more fun the virtual one.
Oh, and I get a lot of questions about my wallpapers too,
most of which come from two apps: Backdrops and Wallrox.
Back in the work department, it's kind of amazing
how much of Mr. Mobile I can manage from my phone.
When I need a new video thumbnail from the graphics team,
I submit the raw materials
through an app called Trello,
which is also where my production schedule lives.
On the YouTube side, Google has a great app
called the Creator Studio,
which has a lot of helpful tools
for managing a YouTube channel.
When I need to transfer files
from my phone to a computer
and I don't wanna dig out a cable,
I use AirDroid to do it wirelessly.
To keep my browsing secure on public Wifi networks,
I use a VPN called TunnelBear.
And when I need to find out more about the hardware
a certain phone is running,
or what network it's operating on,
I use AIDA64 and Signal Spy.
Then there's the apps I use to stay mobile.
Boston Bus Map lets me know
when the next subway is due,
Hotel Tonight gets me a room
when I find myself on a short-notice press trip,
and then there's Zipcar, Maven, Uber, and Lyft
for all my car service needs.
Lastly, when I wanna change the look of
everything about my phone,
Nova is my launcher of choice.
I'm not much of a custom ROM or rooting dude,
so Nova is really accessible
and easy to figure out.
That's every Android phone, by the by.
I only carry an iPhone a few weeks out of the year,
and a big reason for that is because
I feel so restricted in what I can do on an iPhone.
I carry Android because I can change
almost anything about it.
And because when I get tired of one phone,
I can just jump right into another.
I mean, it's Android that's made it possible for me to say,
in 2017, that I carry a Blackberry.
For a nostalgia junkie like myself,
it almost doesn't get any better,
with the exception of the last app on the list, Timehop.
You get a notification every day
to see what you posted on this day a year ago,
or a decade ago.
Just be sure and be ready to laugh at yourself.
Here's a little appendix for you hardcore fans
who stick around to the end.
You're gonna start seeing a familiar sponsor
on my videos in the next few weeks.
I know, some of you might be sick of hearing about dbrand,
because they're, well, everywhere.
But I'm working with them for three reasons.
One, I've done it before, back at Pocket Now,
and so we already have a good relationship.
Two, they actually make a solid product
that's relevant to many of you.
And three, frankly, making Mr. Mobile videos is not cheap.
Check out the last How Mr. Mobile Works installment
to see why that is.
So, let's make a deal:
I'll try to keep the sponsor shots short,
and I'll try to keep them relevant and interesting to you.
In return, I'd appreciate your understanding,
as I do my best to keep the channel healthy.
Thanks in advance.
Thanks for watching, and stay mobile, my friends.