Just a few years ago, the mobile app industry was almost delightfully simple. Easy games, along with a few productivity apps, shared valuable space on the earliest smartphones. But fast-forward into 2016, and the landscape has drastically changed.
Today, mobile apps can help you not only accomplish vital work tasks, but keep your life organized and even escape into a different reality. Join us in examining 5 apps that showcase just what has become possible in the world of mobile app development.
1) Kitchen Stories
This app, available on both iOS and Android, is simple on its surface. It gives you step-by-step instructions for countless recipes, with added visuals to ease the process of cooking a meal even for beginners.
Aspiring cooks can save their favorite recipes for later use, which is where the app’s innovative angle comes into play. It was one of the first to embrace Apple’s 3D touch technology, which means that you can navigate your way through recipes and preview them without opening the entire app, just by applying more weight to your touch.
2) Rock My Run
Millions of people enjoy working out on a daily basis, and many of them listen to music as they do. Fitness apps have become popular because of their ability to measure steps, distance, and even heart rate, but this app takes it one step further.
Rock My Run takes your heart rate and current work out speed, and dynamically finds songs that match the tempo. The result is a more dynamic workout experience that is both fun and healthy, as you will become less likely to lose your breath.
3) Pokemon Go
The phenomenon is sweeping the nation, and for good reason: it combines a classic game theme with breathtaking new technology. Pokemon Go enables users to collect and train their favorite Pokemon in their real-life environment, thanks to an alternate reality overlay on their phone’s camera.
The concept is surprisingly simple. Open the app, then walk around with your phone to discover Pokemon eggs and other goodies. Then you can catch Pokemon that you find, raise them, and even battle with other players who are on the app close by.
4) Google Cardboard
Google is entering the virtual reality game as well, through its own app (and corresponding DIY glasses) called Cardboard. The app allows you to view 360 degree videos, play games that make you feel like you’re in the moment, and more.
Google Cardboard is a marketplace as much as a standalone app. Other developers have begun to create their own virtual reality apps, which take advantage of the technology. Virtual reality is here to stay, and that fact is beginning to be reflected in the app development community.
5) Slack
We’ll finish this list with a business app. While consumer apps have long occupied the innovation niche in mobile app development, business users can take advantage of mobile applications that push the envelope as well, and Slack is the perfect example.
Succinctly, Slack allows collaborative teams across an industry to share knowledge and thoughts. Especially teams who don’t work in the same physical location can take advantage of the app’s ability to easily categorize and manage communications. Individual topics are organized through hashtags, and the app supports both file uploads and an internal notification system for email, cloud storage solutions, and other outside productivity apps.
Though very different in kind, these 5 apps have one thing in common: they continue finding new ways to take advantage of new technologies to create innovative games, job aids, and fitness programs. As a result, they showcase the potential exhibited by mobile app development in 2016. Is your business ready for an app that both reaches and engages your audience? If so, contact us today.
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