Android unique apps: Here is what iOS customers are lacking out on

iPhone homeowners have entry to a prolonged record of wonderful iOS-exclusive apps you gained’t discover on Android, however not all of the leaves of grass are greener on the opposite aspect. To not take a aspect within the Android vs iOS debate, however Android smartphone customers have additionally had loads of distinctive apps all to themselves for years, together with good launchers, customization instruments, and particular apps that don’t mesh with Apple’s philosophy.

Beneath are a few of my favourite Android apps that you just gained’t discover operating on iPhones and doubtless by no means will, however I hope that modifications within the coming years.

Pixel Recorder is a superb utility for recording conversations, lectures, and conferences. Its AI summarization options are genuinely helpful, and gained’t rub the anti-AI people the unsuitable manner. They permit for fast key level technology, smarter and extra dependable transcriptions, and the power to acknowledge particular person audio system. This makes Pixel Recorder a must have for college kids and journalists. The app additionally syncs with Google accounts, offering cloud storage and entry from a number of gadgets.

It does have one flaw, although. Certain, it’s obtainable on Android however restricted to Pixel gadgets. Many options are additionally restricted to newer fashions.

Because of this, it’s not obtainable on iOS in any respect, regardless of Google making lots of its apps obtainable on the platform. Nonetheless, an analogous device developed by Apple that meshes with its ecosystem and makes use of Apple Intelligence can be massively welcome. There are third-party options like Otter, however none come near Google’s app.

I nonetheless use a five-year-old smartphone, so monitoring battery well being is crucial. One app that helps me do that is AccuBattery. It’s one of many few apps I’ve paid for through the years, however it’s been a worthwhile funding.

The app displays your battery’s historical past, charting its charging cycles and offering an informed guess of its well being. It additionally consists of real-time particulars of the present cost or discharge cycle, offers an inventory of apps draining your battery, and teaches you the way to be kinder to your energy financial institution.

It stays one of many first apps I set up on any Android smartphone, so it’s disappointing that there isn’t a direct equal on iOS, particularly for these with older iPhone fashions. Some widgets and different apps element battery runtime, cost ranges, and well being, however none provide the minute element that makes AccuBattery a must have.

Buzzkill is an Android-exclusive app that tracks the notifications you’ve acquired and lets you handle them via a set of crafted guidelines and triggers.

As an example, if I get a number of notifications from WhatsApp inside 15 seconds, Buzzkill mutes subsequent notifications. I even have a set off that pings my machine each minute if I obtain a very necessary message. These are easy examples, however the app provides a large high quality of life enhance. The app additionally has a library of helpful, ready-made recipes.

There isn’t any Buzzkill construct for iOS, however you might in all probability set off lots of its functionalities utilizing Apple Shortcuts. Nonetheless, it’s good to have all of those below one roof.

Not everybody desires to stream music from Apple Music or Spotify, particularly those that have amassed their very own assortment of information. On this case, a devoted offline music participant makes full sense, and one of many premier examples of that is Poweramp.

Poweramp provides many methods, together with superior audio playback choices, Hello-Res output, broad format help, and visible customizations. It’s a premium app however provides a short trial interval lengthy sufficient to check it from high to backside.

There isn’t any iOS model of Poweramp, however the OS does have a number of options, together with Evermusic and Neutron. None actually rival Poweramp’s in depth function record and pedigree, particularly for individuals who worth audio high quality over all.

One other Android-exclusive app that I at all times set up on new gadgets is Hermit. It’s a single-window browser that permits you to flip internet pages into standalone browsers.

It provides a laundry record of performance, together with sandboxing options within the premium model, ad-blocking choices, and a modifications monitor that pops via notifications if a web page has been altered. It’s a massively helpful app for searching particular person boards, turning websites like X and Reddit into standalone apps, or offering fast paths to generally visited websites. I exploit it as a Google Information different paired with aggregators like The Brutalist Report and Hacker Information.

To the perfect of my information, no iOS app compares to Hermit. Notably, the app’s developer has hinted at an iPhone model, however that hasn’t but come to fruition.

Reddit customers have few selections these days, from the swathe of third-party apps that enhanced the social app’s options to the present scenario the place only a few official paths stay. Fortunately, I can nonetheless get caught into my favourite subreddits utilizing RedReader.

The Android-exclusive app acquired an exception from Reddit’s app ban, and it’s functionally the perfect consumer on Android. It provides a reasonably unexciting however extremely practical UI, with subreddits organized in a vertical grasp record. Favorites could be pinned to this record, whereas customers can simply seek for new communities. Nothing is thrilling about RedReader, however it works and works effectively. I’ve by no means encountered a difficulty with the app in my years of utilizing it.

Third-party Reddit apps on iOS, together with Comet and Readder, provide extra visible delight, however neither is as bulletproof as RedReader.

Whereas retro emulators are now not Android-exclusive apps, and we’re seeing an increasing number of launch for iOS, not each emulator is obtainable on Apple’s platform simply but. Some premier examples embrace the jack-of-all-trades RetroArch and the PSP emulator PPSSPP.

I anticipate these availability points to abate within the coming years as Apple relaxes its insurance policies concerning retro gaming. Nonetheless, Android stays the perfect gaming emulator platform for now.

I’ve a sophisticated relationship with Tasker, nearly as sophisticated because the app itself. It’s a multitool for Android customers, providing a dizzying record of contextual automations and triggers. It’s a frightening expertise for brand new customers, however when you scale its sky-high studying curve, you’ll be rewarded with a set of highly effective instruments that may mesh with nearly each aspect of your smartphone.

I imagine Tasker is much too utilitarian for its personal good, however I can acknowledge its usefulness. I exploit it to set off my smartphone’s flashlight by shaking it side-to-side. At one level, I used it to rotate between a number of wallpapers primarily based on the time of day. There are numerous, many different use instances, too.

Certain, Apple has Shortcuts, which provides related performance and an arguably higher UI, however Tasker’s extra seamless automation and acceptance of scripts and superior duties trump Shortcuts.

I don’t imagine Tasker will ever land on iOS, primarily as a result of Shortcuts exists and iOS is much extra restrictive than Android, however extra highly effective instruments baked into Shortcuts gained’t go amiss.

You in all probability gained’t ever discover an app like ML Supervisor on iOS. This Android-exclusive app lets customers extract APK information from put in apps for backup or sharing with others.

I want I had this app put in a number of years in the past earlier than lots of my favourite Android apps bit the mud. Nonetheless, it’s by no means too late to again them up. ML Supervisor additionally encompasses a built-in uninstall supervisor; in the event you’re rooted, you possibly can uninstall system apps.

iOS gadgets use IPA information for apps, and the platform has a number of third-party apps that will let you again them up. Nonetheless, these strategies normally require that your iPhone is related to a Mac or PC. ML Supervisor permits you to save apps on to your machine.

Lastly, what would Android be with out third-party launchers?

These Android-exclusive apps improve the expertise on Google’s OS, whether or not you’re a minimalist, maximalist, or solely care about performance. A number of the finest launchers embrace my favourite Kvaesitso, the favored Niagara, and the venerable Nova Launcher. There are such a lot of distinctive Android launchers on the market, too, that deviate from the norm.

Though Apple has bundled extra customization instruments with iOS 18, the OS nonetheless has strict sandboxing measures, stopping apps like launchers from interacting with different apps. Because of this, you possibly can’t use one app to launch one other on iOS.