You're Such a Smart App!
Pink Staffers Share Their Favorite Smart Apps
August 2018 Issue
PBS KIDS
My favorite smart app is PBS Kids. My five-year-old son is learning to read and he loves Super Why! I love that he is excited about spelling, learning the meaning of words, and READING. To me, there’s nothing more important than developing a love of reading at an early age. – Dawn Payne Harris, Sales Specialist
Pillow
This app is what dreams are made of—literally. A sleep tracker, Pillow helps you find your optimal bedtime and also tracks your sleep patterns—Light, REM or Deep Sleep—based on your breathing. It plays white noise until you fall asleep, and wakes you up at the optimal time before your alarm. – Lindsay Gifford, Art Director
Pinterest
Pinterest is a personal favorite of mine for art journaling. From posting photos and tips on lettering, doodles, small banners and journal borders to page designs and mixed-media layouts, it’s pretty inspiring. Pinterest user tips on buying/creating your own supplies are pretty amazing, too. - Meredith Deal, Regional Director, Paisley Magazine
24/7
I use three language apps titled 24/7 for Spanish, Italian, and Chinese. These apps educate you in these languages with various games. A mindless one is called Color Switch, a challenge to get colored balls into various circles. It takes up time when you are waiting at various spots like airports. Audiobooks is my very favorite.– Donne Paine, Columnist, Reel Corner
PS Express
My favorite smart app is PS Express. As a photographer, who is always traveling to one location or another, it surprisingly offers a lot of image manipulation control on the go. Even during a photo shoot, it offers image ideas that can be used to enhance your final image. – Christian Lee, Staff Photographer
Breethe
When I have trouble falling asleep at night, or if I need a bit of “quick calm” in the middle of hectic work day or week, I swipe to the breethe app on my iPhone and select from a plethora of short and long guided meditations and soothing music play lists, and then I close my eyes and just breathe. – Cindy Whitman, Editor
Hoopla
I have a bunch of favorites starting with Hoopla, which lets me rent audio books with my library card. With HQ you can play trivia online and you could win money! I use Google Fit to automatically track the number of steps I take every day; and GateGuru gives me instant access to airport information when I’m traveling. – TR Love, Staff Photographer
Merriam-Webster
Believe it or not, one of my favorite apps—used daily—is Merriam-Webster Dictionary. Of course, being the owner of a publishing company and an editor, I probably use this app more than those not in the biz, but I couldn’t do without it. Beyond spellings and definitions, this app also lets me know if words should be capitalized and provides audible pronunciations. In addition, it has a word of the day and functions as a Thesaurus. Coming from a girl who read the encyclopedia and dictionary as a child, to me, having an expansive vocabulary is important and fun because it opens a treasure trove of possibilities to express myself. In other words, it’s not just great; it’s a cornucopia of knowledge. – Elizabeth Millen, Founder, Pink & Paisley Magazines