Currently I’m using Huawei P20 Pro as my main phone and a Redmi Note 5 Pro as secondary. My android mt have apps are both installed on these phones. The Huawei is stuck at Android 10, with no official support for recent Android versions, and my Redmi Note 5 Pro is constantly updated with Pixel Experience.
Below are the apps I used on both my phones, in no particular order.
Launcher
Customized Pixel Launcher (CPL)
Like most Android phone makers, the branding and baked-in skin is a bit much, and too little in way of customisation. What I could disable, or remove, I did. Huawei’s EMUI (stuck at 10.0.0.190) launcher is not to my liking, so I opted for CPL. My go to launcher before this was the-now-defunct Buzz Launcher (which I still have the APK for, but too many things broke), and I only changed to CPL, because I wanted a uniform experience across my phones.
Sadly CPL too now is abandoned. So I’m migrating to Ruthless Launcher, on my Redmi Note 5 Pro (running Pixel Experience 13), whose Pixel Launcher lacks some features I need.
Ruthless Launcher
Still new to this, some gestures to lock the screen for instance, need a workaround to work flawlessly. I use double tap to launch a lock app, as the other methods is flaky. It’s based off Rootless Launcher, which I avoided using for what reason I can’t recall. It’s almost similar to a Pixel Launcher which lacks some features I need. My Redmi has Pixel Launcher by default, and I used CPL to complement it, and used it on both my phones to have a uniform experience across my phones. I’m now trialling Ruthless Launcher on my Redmi, and may switch to it permanently on both my phones.
Writing Star
Free tier limits you to 15 phrases only, and while the ads are incessant (just in app) it’s a minor annoyance for the convenience. Unfortunately, there’s no backup and restore option for the free tier, so setting the phrases on a new device can be really trying. Once set, it’s pretty much set and forget, so long as your remember your shortcuts.
iSolat
Simple prayer times reminder. Most importantly, not bloated, and no ads.
Dropsync
Dropbox’s native client would stupidly sync/download files to offline locations with this naming convention, YYYY-MM-DD HH.MM.SS instead of the original filename. Dropsync would preserves the filenames, but I paid for the Pro version for the ability to selectively sync files and folders. I automated the syncing whenever connected to WiFi, and/or at midnight. With the mostly pictures safely copied to my hard drive, I then deleted the pictures to free up space on my phone. My only paid app, out of two on this list.
AirDroid
What is AirDroid app used for? AirDroid app is a one-stop solution to manage your smartphone from a PC wirelessly. It establishes a remote connection between two devices and offers tons of amazing features like file transfer, SMS management, screen mirror, Android file management, and many more.
I mostly use it for file transfers, though the free version has limits, such as copying files, not folders. The most useful aspect of it IMHO, is screen mirroring. You can control your phone on your computer. Some apps may have dedicated tabs/windows for interaction (such as SMS). It allows you to use the web version from a browser if installation of the app is not possible.
Water Drink Reminder
A simple reminder that plays a sound, which can be customised, whenever it’s time to gulp your liquids. The interval, and also the ‘active drinking hours’ are easily configured. With a smartwatch, the reminders can be sent to your smartwatch too.
FatSecret
Calorie tracking app. Our local dishes aren’t prominent, but it’s easy to add custom menus. The web interface could be better. I wish you could also key in your meals intake (especially the pictures) from a web browser.
Bitwarden Password Manager
Been through several password managers, and never stuck with any, except for the work enforced ones. Even though I prefer not using one to keep my memory muscles trained, I’ve now given in to Bitwarden. This is the only password manager that allows multi-platform use even on the free tier. Can’t believe I’ve held on against it for so long.
MX Player
It’s an Indian video streaming platform (only found out when I was getting the link for this article), but I’m only using it for the player. Its gestures-based controls for volume, brightness and seeking is what hooked me. The later updates is getting more incessant with their ads, and I avoided updating it automatically. Like Piktures, the later versions removed features that I liked or got bloated.
All In One Video Downloader
For downloading videos from popular social media platforms. This app though, is always asking to be updated outside of Play Store. It’s constantly kicked out from Play Store and returns anew. On Twitter however, in a tweet with multiple videos, it will only save the first video.
You Tube Vanced
The must have app, among the first app to be reinstalled on a new device, or on my always formatted Redmi Note 5 Pro (for the latest Android). It allows Picture in Picture, background playback and most importantly, ad blocking on Youtube. It’s however discontinued now, but still working. I use Apk Extractor on my other phone and exported the APK file to continue using it.
On March 13, 2022, the developers of YouTube Vanced announced that the application would be shut down after they received a cease and desist letter from Google, which forced the developers to stop developing and distributing the app.
From Wikipedia’s page on You Tube Vanced.
Vanced has been discontinued. In the coming days, the download links on the website will be taken down. We know this is not something you wanted to hear but it's something we need to do. Thank you all for supporting us over the years.
— Vanced Official (@YTVanced) March 13, 2022
I’m not linking the APK file, as so many dubious ones are available online. Download the Vanced Manager, and upload the APK file to virustotal.com to be sure it’s not malicious.
Komoot
In short, the Waze for hiking/biking trails. I don’t really use it for planning my routes, as I tend to just wing it when hiking, but I keep it running to keep me from getting lost. Using it in record mode will show me if I’ve been going on the same route, and save myself from going in circles.
Nights Keeper
Another app that keep getting kicked out from the Play Store for its permissions issue. With Android 13’s restricted access to accessibility services , an extra hoop is placed for this app to run. Granted recent Android and also some Android phone makers are also baking in Do Not Disturb (DND) mode schedules into their phones, I just like that you can set different settings of DND, from no rings, but allows media sound, with defined DND schedules, based on days, or times, to rejecting a call, not just silencing it, or sending an automated SMS if somebody calls you in a DND setting. It has a whitelist feature (allowed contacts may still contact you), or an ’emergency mode’, where a contact’s call will get through after a set amount of tries.
Full Screen Gestures
An app I use to limit hitting on the physical buttons to lessen wear and tear. Also with bigger screens, it’s hard to maintain a single handed grip when trying to hit the buttons. In this video I’ve configured swipes from the to simulate the volume and power buttons.
Apk Extractor
As its name suggests, it extracts APK. The extracted APK can be saved if you choose not to upgrade an app, or to use the saved APK in another phone, in case the app is not found on the Play Store.
SMS Backup & Restore
It backups and restores your SMS, and call logs too. Google keep rebranding their products and this is also saved in Google One now (if enabled). I keep it still, everytime I restore a backup, I only need the Ringtones, Notifications, Photos, SMS and call logs, WhatsApp, and my launcher’s settings, and several of my used apps. I keep it for automated backups to several locations, not just on Google’s servers.
Call Confirm
No buttdialling with this app. The version I’m using is no longer available on the Play Store, or on the Net. I’ve been using the same version since Marshmallow, and it’ll pop up about incompatibilities with the latest version of Android, but it’ll still work, even with the latest Android 13. There are active similar apps on the Play Store, but they’re almost always loaded with ads, or don’t work, you end up with more touches to dismiss the ads, than to make a call.
Click to Chat
Use WhatsApp frequently but with people not in your phonebook? Click to Chat enables you to message without saving their numbers, or saving them later. It has experimental support for Signal and Telegram for now.
Medisafe
Used it for my old folks to keep up with their medications. It reminds you when to take your meds, and also of doctor’s appointments, or notifying you when your medications is running out.
Apps by Google
Most apps by Google I’ve disabled and uninstalled when possible, but these are the ones I keep.
Gboard
Not a fan of glide typing, or shortforms, as I believe the miliseconds saved does not justify laziness. The exercise is needed, lazy typing leads to bad spelling and grammar. I was late to convert to touchscreen phones as I was a heavy hands-on typist and just love the tactile feel and feedback of a keypad (think Blackberry chiclet keyboard). Early touchscreens were small, and my thumbs clunky, but screen has grown (but thumb remain clunky), but I can’t still bring myself to use glide typing.
Google Lens
Visual search. Image reverse search is paramount to weeding out internet scams, also useful for hunting down landmarks, or for shopping for a sneakers you saw someone wearing.
Contacts
Some Android phone makers with their skins (I’m looking at you Samsung) also implement their own contacts apps, which may mean saving your contacts on their servers or on the phone, instead of Google. Changing, or worse, losing phones could also mean losing those contacts. To be fair, using Google’s servers for your contacts would also mean losing them, if you forget your account details, but a Google ID is ubiquitous. You’re more likely be able to recover your Google ID than a Samsung ID.
Besides avoiding your contacts duplicated on both Google or the phone makers’ servers, or even saved partially, a major plus point for me is, if you forget a contact’s number, and lost your phones, logging into Gmail will get your the contact’s number too. Once, I helped somebody get a contact’s number from her Gmail to get a ride back home, as her car broke down, and she’s had a dead phone.
Messages
See reason above.
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